Siren Song

Neen of Foxden Tattoo September 2021 Wallingford, CT

Continuing to work on this ocean/water themed leg feels like a group labor of love.

When discussing where to go next Sirens came up. Since reading The Odyssey and The Iliad Sirens have been a large part of fascination with Greek Mythology. People always think of Sirens as mermaids but they were actually closer to harpies. With bird like feet on land and the ability to fly. And I always respect a mythical feminine being whose sole purpose in life is to drag misguided men to their watery death. As always they pose as an allegory for many aspects of gender, sexuality and life. For example until 5 B.C. Sirens were shown as appearing both masculine and feminine and the mermaid version wasn’t a thing until the Middle Ages.

Yet no matter how much they have changed one thing remains true, their song is lure and the punishment. Like many things our world offers, there is a duality of the lure and the punishment. They have spent years reminding me of this and the pitfalls of our socio-cultural set up, keeping me stronger in my resolve to avoid the lure and the punishment.