Tropomorphoses: Myths from the Evening of Humanity

The forms presented here are an extension to the Metamorphoses, the Latin masterpiece by Publius Ovidius Naso, written in the year 8 A.D., that recounts a series of transformations of humans into animal, plant, and mineral forms. Ovid's stories range from remote mythic times to the founding of Rome. Poets have long recounted the stories of human beings being changed into other beings. These myths are repeated over and over in many cultures and many times. These myths show us how literally pigheaded humans can be and what just punishments or rewards are meted out; coincidentally, the myths may have helped us to understand other beings by becoming them.

For every myth told, however, there are many not told, and these shadow myths track our cultures, appearing only in fragments and allusions. One important difference between these and Ovidian stories is that these myths describe the conversion of mineral, plant and animal forms into human beings; and this conversion results in different kinds of challenges, that result from openings and expansions instead of closings and contractions.

As Heroditus questioned of the Olympians, how can we know if they are eternal or powerful or whether this is their final form? Perhaps we cannot know. Instead, the mystery of living beings presents a Pandora's box of ideas and possibilities of other ways of living. The day of humanity has ended, and the evening begins.