interventions: The Snow Queen
A hobgoblin had created a mirror which magnified ugly and evil things, and shrank good and pretty things. When he held the mirror up to the sky, it fell and smashed into millions of pieces. Some of these pieces got into people’s eyes and distorted their view of the world; some pieces became windows, some pieces even made it into people’s hearts distorting their views of the world.
In this fairytale Little Gerda and Kay become entangled with the Snow Queen and struggle with good and evil. This is also a tale of contrasts. The most obvious contrast is that of Kay himself, who changes from a nice, sweet little boy into a terror when his heart is frozen by the Snow Queen herself. Hans Christian Anderson’s refusal to follow the ‘prince + peasant girl = marriage’ formula beloved of many writers of fairy tales, is notable.
There is undeniable beauty in the tale, with its use of icy landscapes, the tears, the snow and ice itself as well as the clear and powerful symbolism of the mirror.
Rogue intervention, New York City, 2021.
Acrylic paint, wire, paillettes, string bits, incisions, pencil, archival ink, arches paper (30 X 22 inches)
