abstract

Venus, first celebrity of antiquity, a being not of this earth, but born into it, who’s mission to live and love exposes the goddess’ complex, radical identity. Tales of her celestial softness and fiery chaos reflect back to us the realities of our own struggles. And this garden Venus, an ode to marbled metaphor, who argues: received selfies are sweet, but those lost to one’s iPhone library are sweeter. What filters are used? What angle is chosen? Emerging from the seed of myth and the spark of science, our icon of the metaverse, frozen in silence and in place, gives face as fleshy springtime flowers, birds and bees carry on pursuit of their earthly delights. Who are those coming to discover her? Who are those coming to like her? To leave their thoughts in the comments down below? A silent robot, she teases us and we lose our train of thought. As does eternity: Influencer Pastoral! And when this generation is wasted by old age, our goddess will remain in the midst of sending an unknown special someone a chiseled face of beauty and truth, more reflective of their own image than hers.