Tiamat

72” x 36” woodcut on paper

Drawing from Ancient Mesopotamian mythology, Tiamat was the primordial mother goddess, embodying saltwater and chaos, often depicted as a serpent or dragon. In the myth, she is violently killed by an arrow that splits her body in two. In this work, I reimagine Tiamat’s destructive power by having her split a ship in half, echoing the violent rupture of her own body. This piece also speaks to the traditionally male-dominated world of ships, which are often named after women.