lordnastrond
Super Freak
- Joined
- Jul 8, 2013
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Dionysus' body is a TBLeague/Phicen M33 body, which I liked because while its still muscular its a bit more svelte than the bulkier bodies and would reflect Dionysus' figure from his iconography a little more.
The head is a spare sculpt I have from my Hot Toys Winter Soldier figure - I liked the choice for a few reasons, firstly for having long hair and being beardless which are important parts of Dionysus' identity in Greek culture as a somewhat androgynous figure and it also culturally his bearlessness represents his eternal youthfulness like Apollo.
Plus the shadowed eyes is a nice reference to him as both a god of theatre and therefore masks, the fact his male cult members and the God himself in myths often wore makeup to break down the barrier of gender, and also his role as a God of mystery and his religion as a mystery cult.
Plus Sebastian Stan is insanely pretty which suits Dionysus to a tee.
the mini grapes and ivy and the bull skull are all from Etsy, the grapes represent his role as the God of the Vine and Wine and Agriculture, and the Ivy and grapevines are his iconic symbols, with him almost always depicted as wearing a crown of ivy and grapes.
The cup is from the Threezero Tyrion figure, and is used to represent his role as a God of Wine
The Bull skull has a few symbolic significances - firstly the Bull is his most sacred animal and the high priests of Dionysus would wear a horned hat or bull shaped helmet during important rites.
It is also a reference to the older iterations of Dionysus as 'The Horned God' called Zagreus, which was the name of Dionysus when he was a son of Persephone and Zeus/Hades [or both considering many Greeks considered these the same god] before he was torn apart by the Titans at Hera's urging and Zeus took his heart and impregnated Semele with it... only to have to finish carrying Zagreus to term by sowing the fetus into his "thigh" when Hera tricks Semele into being destroyed.
Consequently the Bull skull not only is a way of reflecting Dionysus' portrayal as being sometimes horned, its also a reference to his origins and position as God of Resurrection.
It also acts somewhat like a mask and when paired with the makeup over the eyes evokes his role as the God of the Theatre.
the harness and pauldrons are from the HaoYuToys 1/6 HH18036A Hunting Ground Warriors- Gallic Warrior figure, and I chose this not only because I thought the harness would show a little more skin and indicate his more sensual nature as a god in contrast to all the others I have assembled, but the large paws over the shoulders visually evoke big cats like tigers and leopards [the face of which is on the central medallion] which are also sacred animals of Dionysus.
The large threatening paws also evoke the sparagmos the ritual act of dismemberment and tearing apart with the bare hands which is associated with Dionysus' cult as an rite performed by his followers when they have been fully consumed and empowered by his ritual ecstasy, frenzy and insanity - an act showing the power of being possessed by the God Who Comes and a ritual that reenacts the Gods' death as Zagreus and rebirth as Dionysus.
Likewise the Leopard fur again references this rite, the sacridity of the Leopard to the God and adds a touch of wildness and sensuality.
The dress is made from a few fabric samples from Etsy and I am especially happy with them, the rich purple for evoking wine-like and royal imagery and the lower skirt is a really nice iridescent fabric which changes from green to a claret red depending on the angle which nicely represents Dionysus changeable nature, role as a god of transformation, his chaotic moods and the duel nature of him as both a god of greenery, life and agriculture as well as a god of death, bloodshed and insanity.
The lower fabric also has a Indian style pattern - which fits well as according to the Greek myths Dionysus was raised in secret in India before returning to Greece upon reaching manhood in order to protect him from Hera's wrath.
His Thrysus, the pinecone tipped wand covered in Ivy, and his symbol of authority and most consistently iconic piece of regalia, is made from a Harry Potter Hermione Granger Wand [which has an ivy pattern] which I cut to size and then used an electronic nail file to sand down so it was thinner, it tapered towards the bottom and to make the ivy pattern more pronounced by sanding away the rest of the wand till I reached the metal core at the centre of the resin. I then painted the remaining ivy patterened resin gold and the core brown to resemble wood and used a pinecone charm from Etsy for the headpiece of the staff.
The Satyr/Faun in the later images is the Neca Faun from Pan's Labyrinth and I have included him in some pictures as Fauns/Satyrs are among the most prominent servants of Dionysus in Greek Myth and I have him raising his arms in rapture and awe - ready to recieve the God Who Comes.
The head is a spare sculpt I have from my Hot Toys Winter Soldier figure - I liked the choice for a few reasons, firstly for having long hair and being beardless which are important parts of Dionysus' identity in Greek culture as a somewhat androgynous figure and it also culturally his bearlessness represents his eternal youthfulness like Apollo.
Plus the shadowed eyes is a nice reference to him as both a god of theatre and therefore masks, the fact his male cult members and the God himself in myths often wore makeup to break down the barrier of gender, and also his role as a God of mystery and his religion as a mystery cult.
Plus Sebastian Stan is insanely pretty which suits Dionysus to a tee.
the mini grapes and ivy and the bull skull are all from Etsy, the grapes represent his role as the God of the Vine and Wine and Agriculture, and the Ivy and grapevines are his iconic symbols, with him almost always depicted as wearing a crown of ivy and grapes.
The cup is from the Threezero Tyrion figure, and is used to represent his role as a God of Wine
The Bull skull has a few symbolic significances - firstly the Bull is his most sacred animal and the high priests of Dionysus would wear a horned hat or bull shaped helmet during important rites.
It is also a reference to the older iterations of Dionysus as 'The Horned God' called Zagreus, which was the name of Dionysus when he was a son of Persephone and Zeus/Hades [or both considering many Greeks considered these the same god] before he was torn apart by the Titans at Hera's urging and Zeus took his heart and impregnated Semele with it... only to have to finish carrying Zagreus to term by sowing the fetus into his "thigh" when Hera tricks Semele into being destroyed.
Consequently the Bull skull not only is a way of reflecting Dionysus' portrayal as being sometimes horned, its also a reference to his origins and position as God of Resurrection.
It also acts somewhat like a mask and when paired with the makeup over the eyes evokes his role as the God of the Theatre.
the harness and pauldrons are from the HaoYuToys 1/6 HH18036A Hunting Ground Warriors- Gallic Warrior figure, and I chose this not only because I thought the harness would show a little more skin and indicate his more sensual nature as a god in contrast to all the others I have assembled, but the large paws over the shoulders visually evoke big cats like tigers and leopards [the face of which is on the central medallion] which are also sacred animals of Dionysus.
The large threatening paws also evoke the sparagmos the ritual act of dismemberment and tearing apart with the bare hands which is associated with Dionysus' cult as an rite performed by his followers when they have been fully consumed and empowered by his ritual ecstasy, frenzy and insanity - an act showing the power of being possessed by the God Who Comes and a ritual that reenacts the Gods' death as Zagreus and rebirth as Dionysus.
Likewise the Leopard fur again references this rite, the sacridity of the Leopard to the God and adds a touch of wildness and sensuality.
The dress is made from a few fabric samples from Etsy and I am especially happy with them, the rich purple for evoking wine-like and royal imagery and the lower skirt is a really nice iridescent fabric which changes from green to a claret red depending on the angle which nicely represents Dionysus changeable nature, role as a god of transformation, his chaotic moods and the duel nature of him as both a god of greenery, life and agriculture as well as a god of death, bloodshed and insanity.
The lower fabric also has a Indian style pattern - which fits well as according to the Greek myths Dionysus was raised in secret in India before returning to Greece upon reaching manhood in order to protect him from Hera's wrath.
His Thrysus, the pinecone tipped wand covered in Ivy, and his symbol of authority and most consistently iconic piece of regalia, is made from a Harry Potter Hermione Granger Wand [which has an ivy pattern] which I cut to size and then used an electronic nail file to sand down so it was thinner, it tapered towards the bottom and to make the ivy pattern more pronounced by sanding away the rest of the wand till I reached the metal core at the centre of the resin. I then painted the remaining ivy patterened resin gold and the core brown to resemble wood and used a pinecone charm from Etsy for the headpiece of the staff.
The Satyr/Faun in the later images is the Neca Faun from Pan's Labyrinth and I have included him in some pictures as Fauns/Satyrs are among the most prominent servants of Dionysus in Greek Myth and I have him raising his arms in rapture and awe - ready to recieve the God Who Comes.
