The Gaia Series

  • YEAR: 2022
Women have historically wielded the keys of the household. The responsibilities of being the key-bearer were to guard the family. Still, beyond the physical, females have also been the gatekeepers of cultural heritage, skills, and knowledge passed on from one generation to the next. No one was better in tune with nature than the household's matriarch, with vast knowledge of the flora and fauna, what to glean and when to do so. Understanding of the cycles of growth, awareness of the delicate balance between giving and taking, and vitality are all intrinsically feminine. The motherhood expressed through deep love and care for the offspring transcends throughout nature, as the lioness protecting her cubs or the mountain goat leading their progeny to known streams & salt licks.

Moreover, since ancient times women have been the embodiment of flourishing vitality and fertility, accompanied by hardships associated with fulfilling the multifaceted role of caretakers, mothers, protectors, and providers. To tend to others, cultivate abundance, and carry on a successful legacy, they have been naturally equipped with exceptional innate resilience both in mind and body. These three virtues highlighted as powerful attributes of femininity - wisdom, love, and health - are symbolic keys to strengthening our relationship with nature. Values that are often lost in the mainstream.

Ethics of ecology, especially in the context of human-nonhuman relationships, get a chance to resurface under the influence of ecofeminism which dares to stir up and challenge the standard by shifting focus away from the status quo. Environmentalism is an inherently feminine issue in that sense because, at its core, it profoundly relates to a mindfulness of the environment surrounding us and an intimacy in the ways we are meant to care for it. "Gaia" is set as an exploratory endeavour celebrating female strength and values in nature.

Gaia, 🗝️ N°1: Love

Female values are essential keys to the care of the environment. Love begets love, creating descendants who follow in their footsteps. It transcends species while taking on a variety of forms. Leafy sea dragons are some of the most ornately camouflaged creatures on the planet. Just as deepest love, they are sometimes the hardest to notice. Holding the key to the creation and sustainment, which was designed especially for this project, they pay homage to the women who have historically wielded the keys of the household. Gaia series is set as an exploratory endeavor celebrating female strength and values in nature. It highlights three virtues - love, wisdom and health - which are symbolic keys to strengthening our relationship with nature that seems lost in mainstream ethics.

Gaia, ☤ N°2: Health

The lotus flower is a symbol of spiritual enlightenment, innocence, and purity. Regardless of harsh conditions, low humidity, or barren soil, it stands rooted, rising above all others to bloom in its beauty. The determination of overcoming physical obstacles to flourish embodies the health of both body and mind - reaching spiritual enlightenment. Damselflies swarming around the blooming lotus represent perseverance and purpose in the journey of reaching completion. The shape of the key was inspired by the caduceus - the contemporary symbol of medicine that originally features two snakes winding around often winged staff. "H" at the bottom part of the key stands for "health".

Gaia, 𓆣 N°3: Wisdom

“If you educate a man, you simply educate an individual, but if you educate a woman, you educate a whole nation.” - James Emman Kwegyir Aggrey, 1920 Even in the modern world, women's education still often seems undervalued and neglected. The scarab appearing in the scene symbolizes immortality and protection; it stands for knowledge gathered over generations of women. It's an ode to the underappreciated value of wisdom being passed from mother to daughter to ensure their safety and stimulate their perception of the world; thus, civilizations progress.