Spirals as Symbols of Eternal Return
When I paint spiraling forms, I feel as though I am visualizing the cycles that shape both emotion and spirit. In tarot, spirals represent eternal return, the way experiences repeat until they are understood or transformed. My twisting botanicals echo that symbolism. Roots curl, petals loop, and stems coil in ways that suggest constant movement. The viewer senses that the image is never static. Something within it continues to evolve, mirroring the cyclical logic of tarot’s Major Arcana, where every ending becomes a beginning.
Serpent Forms as Transformative Energy
Serpent-like shapes appear frequently in my work, especially when roots stretch downward in a sinuous line or when stems form coiling bodies. In many mystical traditions, the serpent represents transformation, healing, and hidden knowledge. Its movement suggests energy flowing through the body or the earth. When I incorporate serpent forms, I am invoking that transformative power. The viewer feels tension and release, as though the artwork is channeling a silent current of change beneath its surface.
Botanical Spirals and Living Motion
My spirals are rarely geometric. They behave like living organisms. Vines twist naturally, following invisible pathways. Roots split and coil as though they seek nourishment or direction. These organic spirals create a sense of motion, turning the artwork into a breathing environment. The viewer perceives growth happening in real time. This living motion aligns with tarot’s imagery of rebirth and regeneration, especially within suits associated with emotional and intuitive development.
Tarot Cycles and Spiritual Progression
Tarot reading often emphasizes cycles: lessons repeated, patterns revisited, growth that unfolds gradually. When I integrate spirals into my compositions, I draw on that idea. The spiral becomes a map of spiritual progression, moving inward toward self-understanding or outward toward expansion. The viewer senses that the image reflects their own journey, where intuition guides forward movement even when the path curves unexpectedly. The artwork becomes a symbolic mirror for personal cycles.
Serpents as Guardians of Thresholds
In folklore and esoteric traditions, serpents often guard thresholds between worlds. They appear at gates, under roots, or coiled around sacred objects. When I allow serpent-like roots to wrap around my figures or emerge from botanical cores, I evoke that protective symbolism. The viewer may feel that the spirit within the artwork is both guarded and guiding. The serpentine presence marks a boundary between the mundane and the mystical, inviting the viewer to step into a liminal space.
Spirals as Emotional Currents
Emotion rarely moves in straight lines. It loops, returns, intensifies, and softens. When I paint spirals around faces or botanical centers, I am expressing that emotional flow. The shapes suggest internal movement, a circulation of feeling that never fully settles. The viewer recognizes this intuitively. They sense that the portrait contains evolving emotional states, layered and shifting. The spiral becomes a visual metaphor for emotional processing, aligning personal experience with mystical structure.
Serpent Roots and Hidden Wisdom
Serpent-shaped roots imply depth. They travel underground, unseen but essential. In my artwork, these forms hint at hidden knowledge or subconscious insight. The viewer feels that something lies beneath the visible surface—memories, instincts, intuitive messages. This hidden dimension echoes tarot’s function as a tool for uncovering what is normally concealed. The serpent root becomes symbol of inner wisdom that grows quietly until it rises into awareness.
Symmetry and Dynamic Balance
Even when my compositions are symmetrical, spirals and serpentine forms introduce motion. Balanced faces or mirrored botanicals feel anchored, but the twisting lines weave through them, creating tension and dynamic harmony. This balance reflects the mystical concept of duality held in motion. Tarot often explores this theme through cards like The Lovers or The Wheel of Fortune. In my art, symmetry provides stability while spirals show that transformation remains constant.
Texture as Energetic Vibration
Texture adds vibrational quality to spirals and serpents. Grain, haze, and layered atmospheres create subtle shifts in tone that imply movement and energy. The viewer perceives a quiet trembling beneath the surface, as though the image holds latent power. This energetic texture reinforces the idea that mysticism is not static. It moves through space softly but persistently, shaping emotion and perception.
Rebirth Through Movement
Spirals naturally suggest rebirth. They lead inward and outward simultaneously, offering paths of introspection and emergence. When combined with serpent forms, the symbolism becomes even stronger. The viewer senses renewal, shedding, and transformation. The artwork feels like a moment of becoming, where old layers fall away and new growth begins. This rebirth mirrors the emotional cycles represented in tarot, turning the piece into a symbolic companion for personal transformation.
Why Mysticism in Motion Resonates
I believe that spirals and serpents resonate because they reflect how life actually unfolds. Change is rarely linear. Growth happens through loops, patterns, and energetic shifts. By integrating these forms into my surreal botanical portraits, I capture the movement of intuition and emotion. The artwork becomes more than symbolic imagery—it becomes a living expression of mystical motion, offering viewers a sense of continuity, transformation, and spiritual flow.
