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Team Cauldron Entry (ART): "Soul with Soul" By Fox Estacado
Title: Soul with Soul
Artist: foxestacado on livejournal
Team: CAULDRON!!
Genre(s): Literary/Historical
Prompt(s): Hold My Hand, Coming Home
Rating/Warnings/Kinks: PG-13. Highlight if you wish to know: *WARNING for almost-naked angels, implied about-to-collide/engage in sensual activity that might be interpreted as blasphemous, and very, very minor implied bondage (explained in notes below).*
Artist's Notes/Disclaimers/Thank you: to TEAM CAULDRON for the wonderful last minute support and art criticism, and the snarry_games mods for giving me this opportunity to participate as an alternate and for working out the pinch hitters at the end so this piece can count for points! Thank you especially to bethbethbeth for finding this passage (see below) of "Paradise Lost," successfully maneuvering me away from painting Snape and Harry meeting Batman in Gotham city.
I can finally say I participated in snarry_games! I rushed this piece after taking the MCAT on September 10th, which meant working 50+ hours over 4 days to get this done. Which...towards the end, was absolutely miserable. But meeting the deadline and finally participating in snarry_games (which almost wasn't possible because the MCAT)? Priceless. You will notice that Harry's legs are covered/wrapped in requisite-neoclassical modesty fabric. That is because at 2 a.m., I spent 2 hours trying to paint his legs, wildly unsuccessful due to exponentially dwindling attention span and energy. But, I rationalize that this mild bondage imagery symbolizes the imminent union of two souls, to be bound together, which is our very human visualization of a far more unrestricted Spirit embrace as described by Milton. This piece has a print size of 28 inches wide by 11 inches tall.
Media used: Photoshop 7
Archiving/Usage permission, including the Tribute Video (only after the polls have closed and medals have been awarded): Yes for the tribute video, no thank you for archiving. However, linking to my DeviantArt after it is posted there (so there is a direct link) will be very, very cool. Usage permission for anything besides snarry_games tribute video: Please do not archive, edit, copy, or reuse any part of this painting anywhere for anything.

Paradise Lost (1667) by John Milton, Book 8, lines 618 to 629

To whom the Angel with a smile that glow'd
Celestial rosie red, Loves proper hue,
Answer'd. Let it suffice thee that thou know'st [ 620 ]
Us happie, and without Love no happiness.
Whatever pure thou in the body enjoy'st
(And pure thou wert created) we enjoy
In eminence, and obstacle find none
Of membrane, joynt, or limb, exclusive barrs: [ 625 ]
Easier then Air with Air, if Spirits embrace,
Total they mix, Union of Pure with Pure
Desiring; nor restrain'd conveyance need
As Flesh to mix with Flesh, or Soul with Soul.


Soul with Soul by Fox Estacado



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