I have Invented a Whole New Species - Meet the Steem-Spirits!

With all the attention and patience I could summon I carved these winged ghost-worms into existence. They represent the four elements; Earth, Air, Water and Fire. The fifth one represents a God spirit. They are all active participants in the human psyche, affecting our daily lives in various ways.

This is my attempt to make sense of human behavior in a playful and creative way. I'm trying to understand myself and others on a deeper level and this fall I'm taking an introductory class in psychology at the University of Oslo. My hope is to find new methods of capturing the human story through art.

I'm not sure what kind of creatures they are, they might be some hybrid between bird, butterfly and ghost. None of them have a specific gender but some might enhance feminine or masculine energies in us. I have called them the Steem-Spirits and each of them affect the human psyche in specific ways, helping us or bothering us in our daily activities.

I will first present the Earth-Spirit:

The Earth-Spirit ground us in our bodies and connects us with mother nature. (For this reason I will use “she” when talking about this spirit, even though it does not really have a gender) She cares for animals, plants and all life in general. She fuels us with fundamental needs and instincts like the instinct for survival, reproduction and self protection. These are the most primitive and basic instincts shared by all living creatures. It can be hard for us to transcend these needs because of their fundamental nature based in pleasure and pain. They get us into a lot of trouble, but also protects us and motivates us to care for our bodies. The Earth-Spirit grounds us in reality and forces us to pay attention to the reality of the moment. She wants us to be conscious of our experience right here and now, because after all life is happening right now, not in the promise of future or somewhere in our happy past memories.

The Fire-Spirit

The Fire-Spirit represent emotion. All emotion. When you are angry, happy, sad, jealous excited, he is there. Fire is the motivational energy that makes us act. He is impulsive, creative and responsible for our crazy ideas. When we are struggling and going through great trials and challenge, he is the small voice in your heart saying; “Keep going! Never give up!” He gives of a masculine energy of a brute force power that can turn into violence and destruction. He is the reason for our desire of power and control, which when used for good, have created great civilizations, prosperity and technology.

The Water-Spirit

The water-spirit represent possibility and makes us able to adapt and change. She is the creative source of the Flow-State, that all artists and performers wish to enter. When she is present your movement is gracious, effortless, sensitive and without hesitation. In this state all thought disappear and you have a feeling of lightness, freedom and lack of ego. There is no centre within you and you are the willing, accepting and worryless container of reality as it is. When you paint, dance, cut food, write, surf, skate, clean, or play music she sometimes visits you and uses your limitations and possibilities in a playful field of movement and flow. It is all a game of letting go and attend to reality as it moves with you.

The Air-Spirit

The Air-Spirit represent intelligence, thought and problem solving. It is the most light and transparent spirit and he does not make much fuss when he is used properly. He can be very negative in combination with emotion, creating a lot of noisy thoughts with powerful emotional content. He sometimes have a need to prove that he exist, because of his transparent nature he feels overlooked. He easily forgets that it is only when he accept his transparency and lightness that he fully reveals his true power. He makes our perception sharp and clear, opens our senses and makes us aware of everything that is going on. He forces us to see reality as it is and solve the problems present in a rational and efficient way. When he is present in your mind you might feel as if you have a clear overview of everything and you go straight through to truth, no emotions or obstacles seem to stop you and sometimes he makes us a bit careless to our own and other people's needs. He makes us learn from mistakes and see patterns of information in the world.

The God-Spirit

The God-Spirit is the most mysterious of all the spirits and some even doubt his existence. He can turn himself into all the other Spirits and shows himself to us in everything that we see. He represent the human consciousness and is responsible for spiritual and mystical experiences. You might feel his presence in prayer or meditation and he makes us feel connected and quiet. He fuels us with a great, unspeakable love that seems to include everything and nothing. He opens our hearts and makes us transcend the fear of death and suffering. Nothing seems to be a problem in his presence, you have no personal will or desire, everything you do seem to happen without any reason and still somehow it benefits the healing and freedom of all conscious beings you meet.

I will continue using these spirits in my artwork to tell the human story through psychology, spirituality and philosophy. As I learn more I will use my understanding to express the ideas as best I can. These spirits helps me to make sense of the human experience and encourage me to tell my personal stories in a simple and unserious way. I hope you will find it fun and interesting too :)

All the art in this post is for sale. For more information feel free to leave a comment below or contact me in the Steem Chat.