Notes on the Minotaur
The Minotaur prowled the King Minos’ labyrinth in Crete in the times of Ancient Greece, a terrible monster part bull, part man, or so the story goes...
Maze or Labyrinth?
Now, although the abode of the Minotaur is always described as a labyrinth, it is in fact a Maze. Unlike a labyrinth, a maze is designed for getting lost in, which was rather the point of the original story. From there it is just a short hop of the imagination to swap it for a rather neat box-hedge maze of the Tudor variety, and it follows that the Minotaur must be something of an expert in the art of Topiary.
Mrs Minotaur
Of course there was a Mrs Minotaur - she got him in the end - he just couldn't resist the slinky red dress, and then the Maze became a far more civilized place, where one could feel quite at home, and probably even invite the neighbours round for a little drinkie.
The idea of the Minotaur creating topiary is a picture I had in my head for years, without it ever quite making in into a picture... but he was always on his own, then, and somewhat guiltily clipping the hedges, not wanting to be seen at it. It was not until I started thinking about getting this down on paper - and along came Mrs Minotaur in her red dress - that I realized why the Minotaur was keeping the Labyrinth so neat.
The Original Story of the Minotaur...
...is coming, just as soon as I can get round putting it down here...
All images © Nancy Farmer. Please email me if you wish to reproduce any of these images, or see my permissions page in the 'info' section. Paintings & drawings by Nancy Farmer, UK artist - Myth and fact, fairies and monsters, fetish and fantasy, with a little reality thrown in for good measure. And always art with humour.