Moreena's Necklace | A Mixed Media Art Project for Cosmic Creations No. 11 Theme (Home) : No. 1

After completing the Cosmic Creations No. 11 Contest theme "Home." I wanted to share with you another mixed media art project related to the theme. In this particular project No. 1, portraying the agony of being deprived of one's homeland, the yearning doesn't cease.

If you'd like to join in the contest, the details are provided in Alien Art Hive's contest post here: Cosmic Creations new round is LIVE! Theme: HOME.

I share with you below another version of the theme: "Home".

It didn't happen overnight. Langston's whispers lingered in Moreena's thoughts. Adventures in a foreign land. For months, the eighteen-year-old mulled over the details, planning carefully their elopement. She floated through the last few weeks uncaring the misery she placed upon her family. Friends pleaded with her to rethink her choice of suitor. A more stable, practical young man was brought forth for her inspection. But her senses and heart was already overwhelmed with excitement. A life of boredom wouldn't be her fate, she informed me. Not like her mother and older sisters.

Elopement day arrived. That morning, the family stirred. But not Moreena. Devastated after learning she was missing, they searched the regular coves she would retreat exploring for the unknown. Staff was questioned. Apparently, she'd slipped out without notice from anyone.

Langston waited anxiously nearby equipped with a small and inexpensive buggy he'd borrowed.

They sped off in a direction no one would dare search. Weary form the first leg of their trip, they stopped to rest. However, Moreena's uneasiness of their surroundings gave rise to their first argument.

"I can't wait. When will our adventure begin?" Impatient, Moreena didn't understand the silence during the trip. Perhaps, he's planning our future, she reasoned and is consumed with my welfare.

Finally, they reached their destination.

She stepped from the carriage and surveyed her new home. Expectations met disappointment as she verbally voiced her displeasure. Poor with trash littered as far as the eye could see was beyond the description she'd give to the small town. But a creeping suspicion rose up and settled in her throat that ultimately silenced her with Langston's vicious and disapproving stare.

Six months passed; still no adventures. At least not the ones she had read about in the romance books she borrowed. Another day of boredom, so she paced the small flat about to explode. And how and where was she supposed to find employment? That was unheard of in her circle of friends.

Moreena wouldn't allow nightfall to pass before she received answers. But the side of him exposed that night was never divulged in the short period of their initial involvement.

The answer he spat when confronted shook her to the core.

"Silly, we haven't even settled in good yet. Give it a chance. You're not so high and mighty now away from your so-called society family. First, you'll need to find employment if you want to survive. We can't undertake adventures every day; or even weekly, if that's what you dreamed."

"But you..." Puzzled, she advanced toward him only to grasp his hand for understanding.

He backed away, placed his hand close to her face, then shook his head in a comical expression.

"Listen carefully! I'll only say this once. You need to grow up. I never promised you anything. You lived a good life. A life that ordinary people envied. You threw it all away for a yearning you couldn't control. You don't love me. You love what I represent. Wild. Rebellious. Mysterious. You never saw the real me. I'm just a man with ambitions. Like others trying to rise in life. You're handsome enough. You can get by on your looks."

"On my looks!" Moreena stammered, bewildered. Now frightened, her head jerked back as she yelled, "Oh my God! I thought you loved me, but you only used me. What intentions did you have for my wellbeing?"

"I already knew you weren't the most intelligent of your sisters. That's why I chose you. But you'll catch on and learn the ropes soon enough. And by God, fetch me a pretty penny for my efforts." Whistling, Langston turned and walked away.

An uneasy night in a fitful sleep turned into a decisive morning.

The sky was as gray as her mood. Wiping away tears, she hurriedly gathered her few belongings. With only one handbag packed in a hurry, she wouldn't be burdened with the usual luggage young ladies of her statue carried on their travels.

What she did know was how to slip away unnoticed if necessary. Using this arsenal of deception, she scurried away before dawn while he still snored. And the buggy...well, it wasn't his to begin with.

With a slight smirk, even though the situation wasn't funny, she mumbled, "You didn't take time to realize that I'm a quick learner."

She remembered crossing a river then traveling along the banks. Just return the same way, she thought, and I'll be home in two days. What she didn't expect was the ease in which kind strangers offered her food and drink.

She made it to the river's edge. Stopping to rest, she tied the horse, then leaned down on the grass near the water to refresh. Staring at her reflection, she didn't recognize herself. Instead, her favorite Aunt Nellie's face stared back.

Suddenly, the necklace fell from her bosom. A last minute stow-a-way in her luggage, a strange, but exhilarating feeling stirred in her chest. Glistening upon the water's reflection, she immediately realized the reason she felt compelled to pack it.

She stood up. Remembering Aunt Nellie's teaching, she raised the dial high. Immediately, the sky turned from dark to bright as the sun's rays caught the center through the precious stone and sparkled on the dial. She brought it back to her lips to kiss.

Moreena let slip a tear. This time, it was a joyful one.

She glanced down. Ripples parted the calm trickling of water headed downstream. The image of her home formed. She listened to her aunt's soothing voice. "You can always come home. If not to them, to me. No questions asked. My arms will always be open."

A swirl surrounded the dial in the necklace. It turned several times. Once it stopped, the path to home crystallized. She turned and ran toward the buggy, untying it.

She drove it as fast as she could and kept her eyes fixed straight ahead and thoughts on her future.

She figured there would probably be consequences to her recklessness. Langston had known her in a way the romance books failed to spell out completely. It wasn't the kind of stuff those books embellished that prepared you for real life. She didn't fully understand why nothing had happened yet to her body. Perhaps it would later.

All Moreena knew was that she was headed back in the direction of her vision. Home where she belonged.

This was one mixed media project for the theme "Home" that I truly enjoyed. A young girl foolish lured away from home, then finding out the truth, and returning nearly unscathed with the help of her necklace. Several types of images assisted in completing my theme, and I was lucky to have discovered them, especially the stable diffusion image of the home.

Below are my steps for completing my project:

My first image was retrieved from StarryAI, a stable diffusion program. I was pleased with the home that resembled a magical castle. How I planned to use the image was a brainstorm in which I attempted several different placements in my scene. I finally settled on placing it inside my fractal which created a lovely image of a round dial.

StarryAI Text input:
"Underwater Atlantis city in all its splendor settled at the bottom of the ocean."

Style: Fantasy
Runtime: 50
Seed: 9072993372

Starry Result:

For my supporting images, I included a few pure fractals that I created utilizing Apophysis, a fractal rendering software. The primary pure fractal I used to replicate a pendant.

Other images included the lovely female and the plant stem I used to represent magic water dropping onto the pendant.

Satisfied with the images I chose for this project, I uploaded them to Canva, my design program. With Canva, I can perform the features below with the available tools at my disposal with my upgraded Annual Pro Membership Subscription.

I share with you my procedures.

To a blank, white canvas, I added the girl image.

Resized and repositioned the girl image in the corner of the canvas. I love how she's looking away into the distance. Then I duplicated it to add the textured background. Third, I added my ball fractals are a landscape.

I added the ball fractal and the plant stem.

For the plant stem, I needed to remove its background. Next, I resized both and repositioned them, with the plant stem on top as though it's actually dripping a substance.

I added the stable diffusion castle image.

My thoughts on leaving intact the castle background turned out to be a good, but wanting it to blend into the fractal crystal ball, I decided to place the image into a round, curved frame to simulate the shape of the fractal designs around the edges. This turned out nicely, so I repositioned and resized the frame to fit within the fractal ball. I was able to complete the project.

I share with you below my completed mixed media art project for the Cosmic Creations Theme: Home. No. 1

Thanks for taking the time to view my post. I hope you like my mixed media art project for .