Interfictions Auction 14 - Necklace Based On “A Dirge For Prester John”

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The Blemmyae by Joselle Vanderhooft

21″ necklace made with cloisonne beads, bone, Botswana agate, glass, copper findings, and approx. 3″ carnelian pendant. Click the image for a detailed/hi-res look.

Based on “A Dirge for Prester John” by Catherynne M. Valente

Valente’s tale is a complex story about colonialism, religion and an incredible romance between a Blemmyae (the “anthropophagi” to which Othello refers in Act I of Shakespeare’s play) and a befuddled priest. It’s a story of scorching desert sands and madness, of Old World and New World, of love between two very different beings. It is a tale of dichotomies, religious, cultural, emotional.

This piece is made out of copper chain and copper findings, to match the desert sands of her homeland which Prester John “discovers.” Along with the carnelian pendant, she is made from cloisonne beads, bone, Botswana agate (the large black and white beads that look, appropriately, like eyes) and glass (the small black and white beads that look like eyes).

Joselle Vanderhooft

Tags: A Dirge For Prester John, Catherynne M. Valente, JoSelle Vanderhooft
Filed under Auctions, Interfictions, Jewelry, Necklaces |