Retrograde! But, Make It Fashion: VENUS
Welcome back, friends, and welcome to the fashion show... sort of.
SIDE NOTE HERE: Most of what you are about to read, below, will be repeated in each of the mini blogs about this series. I chose to do this because not everyone reads each individual blog and it is important to discuss some of the general information in each post. This way, if someone only reads one post, they still gain the benefit of the knowledge below. So, if you plan to read all the posts about this series, please forgive the repetition in some of them.
I call this mini illustration series: Retrograde, but Make it Fashion. It's a strange title for a strange idea. However, the origins of my idea for this series' concept does have a grounding in the logical world. I'm not completely in the clouds with this one... well, not entirely. lol
In December '21, Venus was stationed retrograde and I had the idea for an illustration. Venus is the planet that governs pleasure, beauty, and attraction (among other things) in astrology. I was thinking a fun way to personify Venus was to transform her into a kind of Supermodel walking down the runway, or posing at the end of it, or just about to turn... I hadn't planned out all the details, because I ended up not working on it within the time frame of when Venus was in retrograde. So, I shelved the idea, until now. Back in the Fall of '22, there were SO MANY planets in retrograde (except for Venus) that I decided to pull this illustration idea out of the morgue and modify it for those other planets. Venus will go retrograde from July 22nd. I thought that this was a great opportunity to illustrate the impetus of where this little retrograde fashion idea came from, Venus itself. We will get into what the retrograde is and means in a bit.
Image: RuPaul's Drag Race
I remember making a note on the Venus Illustration entry in my Idea Journal. The title was originally "Venus, Sashay Away." It is a reference to the very popular drag competition show Ru Paul's Drag Race. Ru Paul, when she is eliminating a contestant, uses the signature phrase (modified/based on her hit song Supermodel) "Sashay, Away!" There's an animated GIF of it that I like to use sometimes and it ALWAYS gives me a private chuckle. I thought it an appropriate way to conceptualize a planet's astrological retrograde period.
I'm sure you have been asking this question to yourself (and to me) since you started reading this post. Probably you were wondering, in your mind, "What on earth is he even talking about?" Well, funny you should think that. Our position and view here on earth have EVERYTHING to do with explaining what a retrograde is. A retrograde (or planetary retrograde) is when a planet seems to be moving backward in the sky from our perspective here on Earth. In reality: No, planets don’t actually move backward. It’s an optical illusion due to the speed of the Earth’s rotation. But what ancient people realized is that when a planet changes direction or shifts in speed, what it rules will see challenges or confusion in our lives during that specific time.
Astrology is a science that utilizes the placement of the planets to make insightful predictions about how life on Earth is going to develop. It has been around for centuries and that is why we have been able to notice patterns throughout time, refining itself, to figure out that when the planets move, something here on Earth will be affected. You may or may not believe in Astrology, or you might think that it's just a cute part of your daily morning news feed. You may only think it's an amusing thing to discuss on a first date. It isn't my job or inclination to convince you of its validity. I will, however, say this: The waves in our Ocean are created by the gravity of our orbiting moon. The powerful gravity of Jupiter is what protects asteroids and other debris from crashing constantly into Earth (Thank you, Jupiter.) These are both invisible forces. And if this is what they can do to large masses in this universe, what do you think these invisible forces are doing to us or the environment we live in. We are, after all, 70% water. What "waves" is our Moon producing within us? Something to think about. I will leave defending the merits of Astrology as a science to the Astrologers, themselves. I'm just a weekend tourist. They actually live in that building.
Let's get back to talking about the retrograde.
A planetary retrograde is broken down into 3 phases: Pre-Shadow, Retrograde, and Post-Shadow.
In the pre-shadow phase, when the planet starts to slow down from our viewpoint on Earth, we start to see problems crop up and realize some current situations might be on rocky ground. This can last for weeks or months prior, depending on which planet it is.
The actual retrograde phase is when you see the problems that started to announce themselves in the pre-shadow blow-up in front of you. This is when the planet is taking control and moving backward in the sky. In reality, new information regarding what the planet rules are emerging in our lives — something we probably had overlooked originally. The universe is bringing it out dramatically in your face now to show you that you must pay attention to this before you proceed.
The post-shadow phase is when the planet is finally moving forward in the sky again but is still gaining speed to catch up with where it originally fell behind. Once a planet moves past this point in the sky, life should move along much more easily. The post-shadow phase is especially important because it helps us to resolve whatever popped up during the previous two periods so that we are on a better track moving forward.
Image credit: Getty Images.
The Sun, the Moon, and the Earth (because we are standing on it) don't retrograde. Sun and Moon are referred to as "The Luminaries." All planets retrograde at different times depending on their distance from us in the Solar System. A simple rule of thumb that you can follow is: the closer the planet is to us, the shorter the retrograde. The further away it is from us, the longer the retrograde is. How this affects us depends on the planet, what phase of the retrograde it is in, and the zodiacal sign that it is transiting (retrograding/traveling) through. Not to get too specific, depending on what house the zodiac sign is placed in your chart can also determine how a particular planet's retrograde affects you personally.
Most of the time a planet transits through retrograde alone or with one or two other planets at a time. However, there are sometimes years when we get large clusters of planet retrogrades. 2022 is one of them. We had 8 of the 9 planets in retrograde that year.
So, Let's talk about them, shall we. This illustration is devoted to Venus.
Venus is the Goddess of Love, even in Astrology. Venus governs the areas of love, romance, sex, money, beauty, and art in our lives. They speak to the way we express our desires, our passions, and our value. Venus is how we relate to and experience pleasure. They also influence how we socialize, relate to, and attract others. When we are “acting out” our Venus, we compromise, make peace, are loving, and act with taste. On the negative side, we can be self-indulgent, self-centered, vain, and superficial. This all is dependent on where Venus falls in your natal chart, of course.
Venus goes retrograde every 18 months for 40 days. This marks the period when Venus begins her shift from an evening star—bright and visible in the sky near sundown—to a morning star, rising just before the Sun. Venus only visits one of five points on the zodiac wheel during its full retrograde cycle of 40 years. And every eight years, the love planet retrogrades back to the same position on the zodiac wheel. If you were to trace this pattern of movement, you would find it creates the shape of a perfect star. During these eight-year occurrences, old issues with love and money may arise, or even repeat themselves through a new set of circumstances.
Venus will be in retrograde from July 22nd through September 3rd. This retrograde transits backward through the sign of Leo. Leo is a fire sign. Fire signs are associated with actions and passions. Leo is also a "fixed" sign in the Fire Cycle of Life. This means it is very stable or very stubborn and inflexible depending on which side of the coin you are looking at. So what does this mean exactly? How is it going to affect us? Retrogrades force us to reflect inward on the matters that the retrograding planet rules over. This means you might be spending your Summer doing some self-work around your love languages, or taking a walk down memory lane with your Significant Other, or just reimagining your love life and your values in love altogether. If you are worried that you may feel the urge to reach out and talk to an ex, worry not. That happens in a Mercury retrograde, not a Venus one lol.
Some helpful tips that may make for a smoother traverse through this transit are: Check in with yourself. Leo is a sign ruled by the Sun, which represents our ego, our self. This retrograde energy can definitely be used to become more self-aware and forge a stronger connection to self. This eventually translates over to helping support and forge/foster healthy relationships with others (Venus work.) Listen to and heed your creative voice. Leo is associated with the House of Romance and self-expression. With the planet of beauty moving through all that passionate fire, pouring your emotions and active energy into something creative might be just the ticket for you this Summer. Pick up that creative project you put on the back burner. It is retrograde and time for forgotten things to shine.
Before we go, let's talk a little bit about the art.
I explained the concept behind these odd but fun little illustrations. One of the things I wanted to pay homage to was the 1902 French film Le Voyage dans la Lune (A Trip to the Moon.) I have always been impressed and inspired by that iconic image of the moon with that face in it. I'm certain this image has inspired so many other artists and each has paid tribute to this treasure of cinema history. In my case, conceptually, I wouldn't be able to center a face within my illustrated planets. They are in retrograde, and they are sashaying away from us. So we would only see their "dark sides of " or the back of their "heads" if you will. I still wanted to see a face on them in some way. I really wanted to superimpose the faces of real supermodels onto them. So, I came up with the idea of them looking back; serving us one last lewk before continuing on their retrograded ways.
Photo: Le Voyage dans la Lune, 1902.
I wanted to play with the proportions of head size because not all planets are equal (in size) and I wanted to convey that within this series. So some "heads" will appear large on their bodies. Some "heads" will appear small. These aesthetic choices are largely determined by the literal astronomical relation of planetary size to Earth and to each other. I should probably do a "police line-up" of them once they are all completed. lol.
Venus actually had another incarnation before this one. I was working through what I wanted them to wear and I was thumbing out some ideas of what they might look like. I had originally drawn something quite different for Venus retrograding through Leo, but even after I finished the sketch, I knew there was just something "off" about it. It's not that the drawing itself was a bad drawing. In fact, I liked it. The truth was that when it came down to it, it just wasn't the right vibe for Venus. It felt a little too juvenile for them. Venus is an "it girl" but one that has been around for eons. There's a sense of maturity, infinity, and eternality that the image needs to convey. To be honest, I have had trouble trying to put into words exactly what I mean to others. There just was a certain "something" Venus has that needed to show in the drawing. So, I started over again. This second incarnation works much better. Again, I can't put it into words, but this second version HAS whatever it is that I was looking for.
Speaking of heads, Venus, astronomically, has a very interesting planetary surface. It almost looks like swirling lava, in a way. It was a fun challenge to work on getting the color and textures and shapes as close as I could with an illustration like this one. I think it turned out pretty well. One of my favorite faces in the series, for certain. The fashion model that I used as a reference to caricature their face from has these eyes... I'm sure it was the lighting, but it looked like their eyes were literally on fire and piercingly staring into yours. I wanted to try and capture that "look" for Venus. If Venus could be summed up in a facial expression, it would have been that one.
Again, I am playing with the assigned gender roles for the astrological planets. Venus is normally considered female. I didn't want to just gender-flip, Venus. Venus is both masculine and feminine. I felt that Venus needed gender fluidity and therefore considered themselves non-binary. This is exactly how They/Them prefer it, too.
In the planning stages of this illustration, I had imagined Venus with really really long legs. This was a nod to the most recently passed Tina Turner. Those legs of hers evoked more than sex appeal for Tina. They were strength, courage, resilience, and so many more things wrapped into exquisitely beautifully fit gams. I wanted this for Venus, too. I felt that Tina Turner expressed that certain something I was looking for in how I wanted to portray Venus in this form. I also wanted Venus to be wearing a sort of oversized coat, but not a long coat. One that drops right at the top of the legs. I wanted this coat to shine as fashion is an important element in these illustrations, but I also wanted it to accentuate and reemphasize the legs.
I had originally imagined a coat with this mane emanating and flowing from it, but I didn't want it to read as fur or feathers. I wanted these spiked flaring fashion elements to read as shards of something ephemeral. Something translucent. A mane that grabs your attention like a Leo Lion would have it, but also make sense with what else Venus is wearing. Whereas I normally base the fashion on real designer clothing, there really wasn't a reference in the fashion world for this mane that I wanted... Not the way that I wanted it, so I had to make it up.
The coat (except for the mane) is based on an actual designer coat. It is an Alexandre Vauthier from the Fall/Winter 2022 collection that walked the runway in Paris last Fall. The stockings and shoes I took from the cover of NEORGASM XII. I have tried to find information about the model/figure and what she is wearing. I decided to make the stockings red and the shoes blue to match the ensemble more so. The shorts (which are unseen in the illustration) are inspired by Chanel's Spring/Summer 23 collection. I liked this ensemble for Venus. I felt it was very "them." A proper Leo look for the retrograde: A fabulous coat, mane included, shorts, and stockings... What a spectacle even spinning backwards.
A note to my own indecisiveness: With this series, I have just done the backgrounds behind the figures on the fly when the time came for it. I tried that with Venus, and it was such a challenge. They just weren't having it. I went through contrived idea after contrived idea and was NOT happy with the background. They were too '80s and made Venus read too '80s. Venus isn't '80s though I heard she caught a cab ride there during the '80s. I finally came up with a BG that I could live with and that I felt captured the mood and attitude of Venus. I'm finally pleased with it, but just for your all's amusement, here are all the "No's."
That pretty much sums up this blog entry for Venus and my little illustration of them. I encourage you to look through the rest of this illustrated mini-series featured here on the Blog. Weather the Venus retrograde as best as you can this Summer and look fabulous while doing it.
Until next time, friends...
Keep dreaming, keep sketching, keep thinking, keep laughing, and most important of all, keep making art.
*Some of the retrograde information cited from:
Here’s what a retrograde in astrology means and how it affects you by Kyle Thomas @ New York Post.
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