The Hierophant is part of an ongoing tarot card series by visual artist and curator Sekai Machache. In her re-working of the image, The Hierophant represents more of the reversed attributes of the card. There are many invisible labours behind the staging of the photograph from gathering of materials to referencing images of spiritual mediums from a wide range of belief systems. The red lighting is achieved by sunlight shining through red vinyl covered windows.
Upright: Personal beliefs, freedom, challenging the status quo
Reversed: Spiritual Wisdom, Religious Beliefs, Conformity, Tradition, Instructions
A figure sits on a throne in a room that has been illuminated in red light. They hold a golden staff in their right hand, a symbol of authority. In their left hand they hold a white egg and gently cradle a live chicken in their arms, denoting fertility, life and new beginnings. The paintings that hang in the background of the image depicting images of antiquity seem to hang lofty and untethered.
The Black figure is centred, grounded, holding their power with grace and dignity. A red halo perches behind their head indicating a connection to The Divine while their head is covered with a durag, an unapologetic symbol of Black masculinity. This figure cannot be defined by gender or relegated to a particular time period. The intensity of their gaze reflects a presence and stillness, rooted in the here and now, with a vision for the future.
