The White Reindeer
New Year's Eve, Eve
According to Sámi folklore, the white reindeer is often seen as a good omen or a spiritual sign, with their appearance in traditional art, poetry, and music symbolising purity, hope, and resilience.
Due to their rarity in herds, capturing a white reindeer was believed to bring luck, riches, and eternal happiness.
Though I’m in no position to offer you a magical white reindeer for the new year, I can share the above watercolour study I created at my home studio in November.
A textured piece on heavy Saunders Waterford paper using some of my favourite ‘tricks’, like salt, clingfilm and splattering.
Reindeers, I discovered, are a rather comforting subject to paint. I felt a genuine calmness while attempting to capture their soft yet hardy souls.
Stories of the Blue Night
While scouring the net for reindeer inspiration, I stumbled upon this glorious poem by Nils-Aslak Valkeapää, a Finnish Sámi writer, musician and artist.
With its stunning free-form setting and flow, it’s as much of a visual delight as it is to read aloud.
"I have no beginning, no end" NILS-ASLAK VALKEAPÄÄ and life dressed, showed off with colors visions life exquisite the North chose us as did the reindeer the fishes birds, they all decided and we were given the spring day’s marvel the stories of the blue night the North nurtured us strained ~ excerpt from 'Trekways of the Wind', University of Arizona Press, 1994
So, tell me, who’s ready to ring in the bells tomorrow?
Kat x
Happy new year, Kat! This painting is so beautiful--you've really captured the reindeer's spirit.