Box Frame Shrine

A couple of months ago I picked up a double box frame from a charity shop, and have been trying to decide what to do with it ever since.  I decided last weekend that it would make an ideal shrine, and what better time to make it than over Beltane?

It was already painted a weathered white, which I quite liked for the outer part which would represent the Maiden.  I removed the plastic flowers and twigs that were glued in, stood it on it's end and started painting it.  The lower recess was painted red to represent the Mother, and to house a battery tealight to which I had glued an acetate strip printed with one of my favourite images. This is of an amazing wall mural of a Red Goddess.

The top recess was painted in black to represent the crone.  (As you can see the red and black are only roughly painted; this is because I intend to line the recesses with other images, stones, shells etc as I find suitable ones)  At this point I realised that I didn't have a figure suitable to sit within the recess - I have a few moulded and mini versions in stone of the Venus of Willendorf but they were too big or too small.  I ended up buying a block of black fimo, to which I added a small amount of white and red which can't be seen. This was moulded very roughly, as I wanted her to have an ancient and prehistoric feel and look.  Once she was baked I washed her in water from Chalice well in Glastonbury.

I added a moulded white fimo face to the frame section, and printed out  a poem in red, white and black which I cut and added around the outside of the frame and each recess.  To make the frame stand, I glued two old cotton reels at the back, these were from a box of cottons given to me after my grandmother died, so I am very please that something of hers has gone into the making of this shrine.

The shrine was finished as it is now on Beltane, and dedicated that evening; however it is still a work in progress!