Pomegranate with Casing

About Pomegranate with Casing

Luscious pomegranate red glass nesting in a bronze casing. Vamvakas Lay uses bronze and glass to create the illusion of scattered pomegranate seeds.Vamvakas Lay often incorporates pomegranate imagery combined with bronze, to explore this ancient symbol of Christ. With a degree in the Fine Arts (specializing in sculpture), and a diploma in glass, she has received several honors and awards. Her work is part of many collections in Canada, the US, Amsterdam and Korea, and she has participated in group exhibitions in the US, Korea, Japan, Canada and Belgium. Vamvakas Lay now lives in Toronto. "Pomegranate series is an exploration of the cross culturally recognizable symbol of the pomegranate. My interest is based in my Greek cultural heritage. Pomegranates of various materials are found in most households as amulets of good fortune, abundance, and fertility. The symbol is linked to the Classical Greek myth of Persefone and the fruit that she brought from the underworld. As a result, pomegranates and pomegranate seeds can symbolically be linked with the unconscious and the spiritual. Pomegranate, as one of the Ancient Greek pagan symbols is still in use in Modern Greece and can be seen as a reminder of the common thread that connects and interweaves the past with the present." - Catherine Vamvakas Lay