Saint Barbara says: “Idgaf.”
This recording is from 2013. It’s one iteration of an idea around my obsession with Saint Barbara. The recording is short, and I think was made while driving in the car, so apologies about the poor sound quality. I’m not sure why I never ultimately pitched this proposal to Norwich. Maybe it has to do with becoming pregnant with my second child. Sometimes my ideas don’t go anywhere, but I am really glad it surfaced today given the current news of Roe v. Wade. I am angry and sad and feeling grief as so many are today.
Let me also add that I am not Catholic, nor of any specific christian denomination nor of any specific faith. My interest in Saint Barbara began when I was driving with my husband behind a Safeway in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. I can’t remember why we were there, maybe to scope out a skate spot or maybe to collect cardboard (back then we were dumpster diving for anything useful)- no matter… The important thing here is that I saw this plaster icon in the ditch and insisted he turn around and we bring it home. It was moldy, missing hands, paint was peeling, and for 7 years it went unresearched. Eventually I found an exact match online to reveal it was Saint Barbara.
My research revealed that St. Barbara (invoked against sudden death, lightning, and fire) was part of a trio of martyred female saints who were demoted from sainthood in the 1970’s the other two were St. Catherine of Alexandria (invoked against diseases of the tongue and for the need to be well versed) and St. Margaret of Antioch (invoked during childbirth and against kidney diseases). They are part of a larger group called the fourteen holy helpers, early saints circa medieval times who are invoked against specific afflictions.
As I continued down my own research rabbit holes, I attended a lecture by an MFA candidate in art history specializing in medieval devotional iconography. I wish I remembered her name! Dang! Because she cemented my fascination in these three specific saints.
A project started to form in my head and I had this vision of these three saints as part of a feminine tri-force, respectively symbolizing resilience, the power of motherhood as a creator of life and in turn the creatrix of death, and elocution. I imagine many women prayed to them for guidance and strength which is why I found it interesting that their Saint hood was down graded in the 1970’s along with many other saints. The reason given for this was that their histories were more mythological than fact.
I feel like I could go further and tie in theories by Joseph Campbell or Betty Friedan here about the mythology of feminine idologry and devotion, but here we are. Fast forward to today. When I rediscovered the recording from so long ago; on a day when women’s rights and freedom of body autonomy have been overturned. There is so much more that can and will one day go into this.
I think for now, I want to leave this project an open ended question with room for development.
Perhaps one day I will come back to this idea and see it through, and perhaps it takes more than just me to make it happen, maybe a collaboration? For right now I am eager to hit send and share it with you.
FYI- that baby I had when I hit pause on this proposal is a girl; and I can’t help but think what is the legacy we are leaving her? Who will she turn to when she needs assurance of her path?
There's an Icon in the ditch.