Penelope— Now at the West End Gallery
–Loreena McKennitt, Penelope’s Song
I have employed Penelope, from Homer’s Odyssey, as the subject of several paintings over the years, including the one here at the top. It is a smaller piece, 6″ by 12″ on canvas, now at the West End Gallery.
As a refresher, Penelope was the queen and wife of Odysseus, king of Ithaca. In the tale, Penelope waited for ten years for Odysseus to return from the Trojan War, the span of time, of course, that was the period that comprises the tale of the Odyssey.
Penelope waited constantly during this time, forever looking out over the sea and scanning the horizon for Odysseus’ ship. During this time, she was urged by more than hundred suitors to select a new husband. She would put them off by saying she would not do so until she finished weaving the burial shroud for Odysseus’ elderly father, Laertes. Cunningly, she would weave each day then unravel her day’s work each night so that the shroud never seemed to progress.
There’s more to the story than this, of course. But it is the image of the aching Penelope looking out from Ithaca that has always stuck with me. I often see it in pieces such as this. Maybe having that story engraved in my mind makes that so. Not sure. but it can’t hurt.
Here’s a song from singer/songwriter Loreena McKennitt about just this subject. This is Penelope’s Song.
Redtree Times 