Hati: chasing the Moon across the night sky and over the winter forest.

While “magic realism” does not usually include myth these two paintings incorporate the mythological Nordic wolves, Sköll and Hati. They chase the sun and moon in an attempt to devour the celestial orbs and as a consequence cause day and night. At Ragnarök, the end of the world, both Sköll and Hati will succeed in their quests.

A whisper of Nathanial Hawthorne crept into my vision of the painting Hati which conjures up the fear people have of the forest at night even today.

*A diptych (pronounced dip-tick) is a piece of art created in two parts. The format of the pictures may be landscape or portrait, usually the same size and relate to each other visually sharing a similar technique or color palette or may focus on contrasting concepts. Early diptychs became a common way to display religious stories as portable altarpieces with both sides hinged together and folded in half.