Axis Mundi (One Ocean)
Acrylic on 3 gesso panels, 6’ x 5’
The term Axis Mundi comes from the Latin words axis meaning ‘line, pivot, or axle,’ and mundi meaning ‘world.’ Sometimes referred to as the Cosmic Axis or the Tree Of Life, Axis Mundi is a symbolic representation of the ‘Center Of The World,’ a hallowed meeting point that joins heaven, earth, and the underworld. Because this axis serves as the location where angelic regions intersect and where the universe of ‘Being’ is accessible in all its dimensions, this celestial epicenter is a solemn realm . . . a place where we can transcend our finite limitations and merge with the Infinite.
Reaching the center is equivalent to a consecration, an initiation; yesterday’s profane and illusory existence gives way to a new life; one that is real, enduring, and sacred. Not surprisingly, this journey towards the symbolic ‘center’ is arduous, often circuitous in nature, and fraught with great peril and suffering.
Different cultures across time have represented the axis mundi in numerous ways, from natural formations such as mountains, trees, and columns of smoke or fire, to human constructs like towers, ladders, totem poles, or as I’ve chosen, the cross. Mired in conflict, the cross presents us with many contradictions. Initially a state-employed device of humiliating torture and death, the cross became a symbol of the human potential to ascend to one’s own spiritual center, known universally as God Consciousness.
Commandeered by those lusting for money and power, the cross was later used as an agent of colonial subjugation and cultural genocide during the Era Of European Discovery & Conquest (circa 1500 AD to 1900 AD), while in recent times it’s become indelibly linked with widespread sexual abuse, hierarchical hypocrisy, and canonical betrayal.
Inspired by humanity’s continued and unrelenting abuse of Earth’s waters, the various scenes depicted in this painting show three key ocean regions under threat, beginning on the far-right panel and moving left: (1) Coast; (2) Continental Shelf; and (3) Deep Ocean. Look carefully; each of the three settings tells many interconnected stories . . .
Whether or not our species can survive is dependent on our collective willingness to courageously unearth - or perhaps rediscover - our own sacred ‘Center.’ In the words of Carl Jung: “No tree, it is said, can grow to heaven, unless its roots reach down to hell.”