It’s hard to believe, but I used to suffer from arachnophobia: the fear of spiders! So how is it that today I not only create spiders but have also developed respect and appreciation for these little predators? It all began a few years ago with a vision …
I was born in Germany – and while other cultures have always fascinated me, they are not my area of expertise, so I can definitely rule out any corresponding cultural influence. However, what sets me apart from many others is my faith!
I am convinced that every form of life has a soul, which doesn’t make me a vegetarian – I’ll explain that in a separate article one day – but it does demand respect from me, even for the smallest of creatures. I came to appreciate spiders when, during a ritual, I let myself drift and asked to be taught something.
During this spiritual journey, I suddenly found myself in outer space and was looking into the face of a gigantic white-and-blue patterned spider, which was busy weaving threads into webs from which the fates of individuals as well as entire worlds unfolded.
I couldn’t speak to her directly, but my companions explained that the bite of this mother spider could be both deadly and a gift of knowledge and power, if one survived it. I won’t go further into the events at this point, but what was shown to me reminded me of the three Norns from Germanic-Scandinavian mythology.
When I later did some research, I came across an old Hopi legend about a spider with similar responsibilities. Unfortunately, I couldn’t find much more, but the impression I had back then, which also took away my fear of these creatures, has stayed with me. So, it’s not surprising that I occasionally dedicate my art to spiders and their webs …
