As Above, So Below.
A commissioned painting by Hannah Pugh All Is Not Lost art.
(180 x 90 cm. Ink, watercolour, bleach and gold leaf on raw canvas.)
On this day of the Summer Solstice, a day of light and welcome, of velvet skies draped across landscapes languishing in the neverending sunlight, it felt like the right time to share the story of As Above, So Below - an exploration of the cyclical nature of being, horizons between places and every effort made to capture a visual sublime to ignite the dormant awe that lies inside us all.
A painting commissioned by wonderful collectors of mine, now hanging in its new home in Croyde, Devon, it’s stories within stories absorbing the ebb and flow of a real world tide just outside the window.
We are absolutely blown away by the impact this wonderful piece of art has had in our
room. Our expectations were high when we met with Hannah at the planning stage and
talked through the size and style we were looking for. She kept us well informed throughout
the process and gave us the opportunity to have an input into the final product. The finished
article though is well beyond our expectations with so much detail but creating an
enormous impression. You are a very talented artist Hannah.
Brian and Sue
January 2023
I had an idea that I wanted the sky to bring the drama to the piece, and the sea to be quieter and calming. I wanted to try to create a huge sense of distance and epicality, reaching far out toward the horizon, where oceans meet skies, and all that therein lies.
As I was painting I was aware of microscapes within the larger scape emerging, Somewheres and Elsewheres appeared within the whole that I was painting a mix of imaginings, memories and intuition. I started to think a lot about microcosms and macrocosms, wheels within wheels, how nature echoes and repeats itself across different scales - fractals, snowflakes, our nervous system, rivers - and a phrase came to mind; as above, so below. This in turn led me inevitably to the internet where I fell well and truly down a rabbit hole reading all about the Emerald Tablet, the Occult, Hermetic writings, celestial mechanics and Gaia.
"As above, so below" is a popular modern paraphrase of the second verse of the Emerald Tablet (a compact and cryptic Hermetic text first attested in an Arabic source dating to the late eighth or early ninth century), as it appears in its most widely divulged medieval Latin translation:
Quod est superius est sicut quod inferius, et quod inferius est sicut quod est superius.
That which is above is like to that which is below, and that which is below is like to that which is above.
Among historians of philosophy and science, the verse is often understood as a reference to the supposed effects of celestial mechanics upon terrestrial events. This would include the effects of the Sun upon the change of seasons, or those of the Moon upon the tides, but also more elaborate astrological effects.
According to another common interpretation, the verse refers to the structural similarities (or 'correspondences') between the macrocosm (from Greek makros kosmos, "the great world"; the universe as a whole, understood as a great living being) and the microcosm (from Greek mikros kosmos, "the small world"; the human being, understood as a miniature universe).
The Magician, often thought The gold o represent the concept of "as above, so below"
The gold of the moon in As Above, So Below, is made up of 24ct yellow and red gold, which subtly changes with the shifting light in the room. This is varnished with a UV protective layer, to protect from atmospheric changes and being touched.
We decided on a walnut frame with a prominent grain and I personally delivered the piece to their home, where my wonderful partner, who happens to be a professional gallery technician, installed and hung the artwork at the foot of their bed… The view from the window in the room where it’s hung is quite something to live up to, but once it was there it felt like it was home.
If you’ve got any questions about the process or commissioning your own painting - drop me an email here.
As Above, So Below, is available as a hand finished print on paper or on canvas, in a range of sizes. To customise your print in size or to talk about framing options don’t hesitate to get in touch! You can also make an appointment to visit me in the studio if you fancy a chat over a cuppa :)