Donna Louise Faber

OH LYDIA!  © June 23, 1990 by Donna L. Faber.  This is one of my absolute favorites.  She is a very naughty girl, but also a study in depth and character!  The original is 16”x24”, done in pen and ink with just a touch of black pencil on Bristol Water Color paper. 

The year 1990 was twenty years ago.  I don’t know if I’ve changed all that much, but I know that my perspective certainly has. Then, I was 26 years old, and we’d recently moved back to San Francisco from our first two year period in Connecticut (which was a disappointment).  It was a difficult time, and I was feeling very boxed in.  I had unresolved issues about my parents, brought a lot of angst into adulthood (and was thereby completely unprepared for it), and kept running into my own wall of anger.  The last thing I wanted to feel at this point was exposed and vulnerable.   And yet somehow I did. 

In retrospect, I’d say this piece was rather appropriate.

This original art is available for purchase.  Please contact the artist directly.

Sizes

11" x 17" $25.00 8" x 10" $15.00 5"x 7" $10.00

 

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Lingerie Vampire © 1990 by Donna L. Faber.  I don’t know exactly what date this was done, although it was when I was into working on Bristol Strathmore water color paper some twenty years ago.  All those bumps and grooves were very interesting.  The original is 5" x 7", and it’s done in pen & ink with colored pencil. 

What I can’t help but notice is that this particular figure is a recurring modern theme for me, as reflected in my pending piece (at the time of this writing) called Francine 3: Lizette Maria.  I don’t know if it’s the fetching gaze or the white night gown, but it’s interesting to note that I’ve drawn a version of this feminine figure before.  I have no story to tell for this piece, and wonder if perhaps Lizette won’t tell the story for this vampire, as well. It’s a story about waiting, wanting, and surrender.  It’s a story about love, too. 

This is also a favorite of a friend of mine, and so it becomes special to me.  If she likes it, chances are you will, too.  

 

Siete sempre un'ispirazione!

 

I hope you enjoy it.

 

This original art is available for purchase.  Please contact the artist directly.

 

This piece is available in 5" x 7" prints by clicking below.

 

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Francine 2: Little Black Dress © January 10, 2010 by Donna L. Faber during Mercury Retrograde.  This piece is done on Strathmore Bristol Vellum, 100 lb. paper, with Prismacolor markers.  The original is 14” x 17”.  Francine’s face has several layers of vellum, and as a result, her eyes have more depth than I expected.  As I write this blog post, Mercury has just gone direct, and thank heaven for that!  Communication has been murky at best on all planes. 

I am genuinely surprised and delighted that Francine, my internal muse, did not go quiet with the completion of “Don’t Tell Me To Stop”, and so now “Francine 2” is it’s companion piece. 

Sizes

11" x 17" $25.00 8" x 10" $15.00 5" x 7" $10.00

Francine is forever the eternal and relentless lover. She seeks love in all places, without boundary, without rest, and in defiance of convention and standard morality. 

In this piece, she asks, “Will you take a chance on me?”  

Many of us have childhood stories to share.  I was raised in less than ideal conditions, by neglectful parents, and I was predated on by adult men as many girl children are.  I’m sure some of you were raised in conditions far worse than mine, and some of you were blessed with  satisfying and even ideal childhoods.  Whatever the case, we were all tasked with building the rest of our lives on what we went through, however imperfect the foundation, however precariously our emotions were rendered.  Childhood is the time when our reactions are set, determining the lens with which we view the rest of our lives.

As we grow, we make mistakes although many of us strive to do the best we can. We have hopes and dreams.  We fall in love and get hurt, and grow in and out of friendships and relationships.  Along the way, we make incredible emotional investments in the people we love, many times looking to them to hold us aloft on the strength we do not yet have, or do not believe we have ourselves.  We project so much on those we love, so much.  And those people close to us, in their ignorance and selfishness, their abject human-ness, deal emotional blows that hurt far greater and deeper than we ever, ever anticipated. There are even times when we blame ourselves, as if our behavior has anything to do with the carelessness of others.  It is one thing to take responsibility for our own mistakes, but assuming the yolk of guilt for those of others is entirely another thing, and such an easy trap to fall into.

This is the most delicate, and yet most critical part of being human.  We strive to do what is best, but many times it isn’t what is best for us.  Women are rendered fathomless, and our hearts become a Pandora’s box of secrets.  Our burden can become very, very heavy.

Through these trials and no matter how hard it is, we must find our way back to an emotionally healthy place, a place that affords us happiness and even glimpses of joy. 

But how?   

Experience has a way of pushing us through hoops that can be quite uncomfortable.   Certain people come into our lives and their very presence teaches us about ourselves.  We are yanked right out of our comfort zone.  Do we welcome this experience or fight with it?  Do we crave growth or do we yearn for the comfort of habits and predictability?  I believe if you looked in the mirror you would see a person who harbors a bit of both.  We take two steps forward and one step back and so on.  It depends on the incentive. It depends on the strength of our desire.

Francine is the part of me that isn’t afraid to take risks.  I don’t mean careless and stupid risks.  I mean emotional risks.  The kind of risks one must take in order to find love, friendship and then ultimately healing.  We can refuse to be ruled by our negative emotions.  They say hate is the opposite of love, but I don’t believe that at all. Hate is sister to love. They have the same passionate blood running in their veins.  It is fear that is the opposite of love.  It is fear that leads to emotional stagnation, and then finally the complete negation of effort.

The path to healing turns it’s back on fear, and takes us out of our protective shell and into creation. The path to healing is fraught with risks, true, but with Francine, we are in good hands. 

In the dark of night you put your head down on the pillow, and in the silence there is only you, your thoughts and your God or Goddess.  However, Francine won't be ignored, and she is there in your bed whispering in your ear (how did she get there?). You feel her hand on your hip, familiar yet tentative. The other is warm against your cheek, cupping your beautiful face (and, yes, your face is oh so beautiful).  Her auburn hair is spread beautifully across the pillow.  You are warmed by the heat of her body against yours, yet her green eyes penetrate the oceanic depths of your eyes, and it is a bit unsettling.  How does she know you so well?  

Francine knows what you’ve been through, because she’s been through it, too.  It may have been in another time and place. It may have been another life, but she understands, because she felt that emotional burden, and she remembers.  She sees what others can't see, and she knows your secrets. Still she does not judge you. She only wants to love you.  

Do you feel her? 

Francine whispers and you feel her warm breath on your neck. She smells like sweet mint.

She says … 

Try not to be afraid. 

Forgive yourself, and take a chance on joy. 

I will not judge you. 

I won’t hurt you intentionally, and I won’t let you down. 

Let me love you.

I won’t hurt you, my darling.

I won't hurt you.

Oh Francine, how I adore you.

So much love,

D~

This original art is available for purchase. Please contact the artist directly for pricing and information.

See this piece on Redbubble.

The companion piece to this is "Don't Tell Me to Stop". Read more here.

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 The Queen of Wands © November 28, 2009, pen & ink on Strathmore Bristol 100 pound vellum. The original is approximately 14" x 17" , and is cut out and mounted in layers. 

 

Sizes

5" x 7" $10.00 8" x 10" $15.00 11" x 17" $25.00

This original art is available for purchase. Please contact the artist directly for pricing and information.

I started this piece in late October and didn’t expect it to take over a month to complete. At that time I was on a roll, producing art quickly and with regularity. I was focused initially on a self-portrait of myself and my spirit guide, Gregor. I’ve always wanted to do a self-portrait, but never got around to it. Maybe it’s because I never knew myself fully until this point in my life. As the piece emerged, it looked like a strega (Italian witch) and her guardian, which was appropriate because I have past life memories and impressions all around these geographic and esoteric areas. In fact, when walking a path that included the Craft, the only documented facet of modern day witchcraft that resonated to me authentically was the old religion, Stregheria. Everything else seemed reinvented. That was long before meeting my spiritual mother. I was much younger, and I’ve written much about it. 

Wands, (also called Rods or Sticks) are one of four minor arcana suits in a tarot deck.  They are about spirit, or spirituality and intuition. The royals in this suit are about spiritual mastery and intuitiveness. Likewise, this Queen is highly intuitive, and is a catalyst for growth in others. If this Queen is in your life (in one form or another), or if you meet her and interact with her, you will grow. You will grow because of her or in spite of her. But, have no doubt … you will change and grow.

The key phrase for the Queen of Wands is I know myself.  This Queen has walked the paths of both dark and light, selfishness and compassion, and made a conscious choice toward personal evolution. She knows who she is and accepts herself wholly and without illusion. She no longer needs to see her reflection in the eyes of others for personal definition, and is beyond looking to others for approval.  However, she remembers the lessons of her past.

The dragon in this piece indicates the presence of the most primal spiritual energy in the Queen’s existence. Not spirituality that you read or write about and not the kind you go to lectures to learn. Dragons, in a spiritual context, represent the day-to-day spirituality which is intrinsically a part of our lives ... also known as little voice that speaks to us.  Dragons are the supreme guardian, present even before Christianity defined angels, and the modern new age movement defined spirit guides. Before all this, there was the primal and ancient dragon, whose presence as guardian, mentor, and messenger kept us connected with our spiritual and emotional natures, the truest form of who we are as spiritual beings. Now, as the earth shifts on its spiritual axis, dragon guides re-emerge to awaken the sleepers (us).

I struggled with this piece for days, through the new moon in Scorpio, the Saturn/Pluto astrological thing, a wicked case of premenstrual syndrome and as work (my office job) ramped up intensely.  Suddenly, my time and attention were pulled elsewhere, and I felt like I was navigating life under water for a week.  The image of the witch and her dragon seemed blurry as they competed with one another for space on the page. I had the hardest time doing her face, too, and tried and failed more than once. I reached out to my family and artistic friends on the net, looking for guidance, and for a time, I considered scrapping the piece entirely.  But no, I was too in love with the dragon, my beloved Gregor, even if the rest of the piece didn't work well.  So, I reworked it intensely, cutting, redo-ing, resizing, and reshaping.  Then, satisfied with my efforts and in a moment of defiance, I decided to let the piece birth itself for better or worse.  

I woke up one morning and realized as much as this was a self-portrait, it was also a portrait of the Queen of Wands. Herein was the cathartic moment.  It was still me, but it was She, as well.  With this realization, I found the Queen's inspiration, and the muse began dancing.  I'd like to say the composition and flow moved perfectly thereafter.  But, it didn't.  She still gave me a lot of grief in her birthing.  Maybe she's just a difficult Queen to get along with, hm? 

I present to you the the second in my series of Tarot Queens.  

So much love,

D~

Read about the Queen of Pentacles, the first in my Tarot Queen Series.

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BUTO, the Cobra Goddess, ©  February 16, 2009 by Donna L. Faber.  The original is 8 x 10 and done in pen & ink on Strathmore Smooth Bristol paper, then cut out and mounted on black textured paper. The highlights are done in silver metallic ink, just a tiny bit of colored pencil was used.  

I have so many past life memories from Ancient Egypt that it sounds contrived. But trust me, they're real. The cells don't lie.  I did this piece just before I did Gregor.  Here, I first experimented with the scaling technique that would eventually be all over my dragon.  This piece also signifies a re-emergence of my art, after a period of dormancy.

This information about Buto was swiped from the internet.  All credit goes to the author, but I can't remember where I got it.  If it's yours, please write me and do most certainly let me know.

Buto
(Uatchit, Udjat, Wadjit, Edjo)

Buto was a cobra-goddess whose original home and cult center was in the Delta of the Nile at Per-Uatchit. In time she became a prominent protectress of all of Lower Egypt. As such she was routinely connected to the goddess of Upper Egypt, Nekhebet. Together, they appeared in many pieces of art as symbols of the Two Lands, a united Egypt.

Buto did not just protect Egypt, she also was an aggressive defender of the king. She was portrayed as the uraeus cobra first worn on the brow of Re, and later the pharaohs'. Her hood is spread in a threatening position and she is ready to spit poison on all of the pharaoh's enemies or burn them with her fiery glare. It is thought perhaps that her powers could be used against the pharaoh as well. Her bite may have been the deadly device used by Anubis at the appointed time of the pharaoh's death.

Buto was a personification of the sun's burning heat and she was called the "Lady of Heaven" and the queen of all of the gods. She was closely associated with Horus the Elder, who was the protector god of Lower Egypt. Also she was associated with Harpokrates (Horus the Younger); she protected him from Seth in the marshes of the Delta while Isis was searching for the body of Osiris.

This original art is available for purchase. Please contact the artist directly for pricing and information.

 

Sizes

5 x 7 $10.00 8 x 10 $15.00