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Jessenia Nauta
Serpent, 2026
Dominican Republic
The Serpent is a reclamation of indigenous connection to ancestral relationships with the moon — through reconnecting through symbolism.
The Cañari were a pre-Columbian tribal confederation of Cuenca, Ecuador, where my ancestry on my father’s side is from. The word Cañari itself comes from “kan” meaning “snake” and “ara” meaning “macaw” — making the Serpent not just a symbol, but a living part of the name itself. This image of the Serpent came through researching old symbols; the original artist of the template is unknown to me at this time. Through recreating my own version, and through intuitive somatic connection to the symbol, what arose — as you can see through the detailing — is multiple worlds within the world of the Serpent. It has a journey of its own amongst the intricate curves, reminding you of the aliveness that still lives within the Serpent.
What came through after the completion of this piece is an awareness of aliveness kept throughout whichever part of the journey you are in within your life. Things will keep moving, as long as you keep moving. Even in stillness, there is aliveness. Death is something that cannot be controlled, but something that initiates you into another spectrum of your journey. Just like the colors alternate in the colored version, and the pulse within the black and white version continues to undulate no matter which direction you look — through that, you can seek your own connection to protection around this particular cycle of life.
Similar to the relationship with the moon. The cycles, the constant change, isn’t here to serve as a problem as much as it does to restore you. To shed what no longer serves, and to remind you of what your truth is at any given moment. Truth isn’t singular — as much as it is an alternating, pulsing vibration that is always with you, following you as you journey amongst the many ups and downs of life.
The three-dimensionality within the Serpent itself also serves as a meditative reminder of these ups and downs of life. Which, for many of us, may feel grueling — but when we look at the bigger picture, there is a beauty that dissolves within itself to create an intricate image that brings a sense of wholeness to life.