A close friend’s pregnancy impressed upon me the subject of childbirth. In this painting Hidden Child my concern took on a mythic expression. What lies beyond observation?
First, I explored the myth of the ‘hidden child’, from Levi Strauss’s discussion (in his book South American myths on Hidden Child) in which the demiurge gives birth to a child from his knee. In Greek Mythology Zeus sewed his unborn baby onto his leg and Dionysus (god of wine) was born a few days later, from his thigh.
This magical way of bearing babies could become a metaphor for the new roles of men and women in modern developed countries. Men might copy penguins, who hatch the eggs, leaving the females freed to forage. This relates to feminist approaches, the fight for women’s rights for the same social opportunities as men.
