My concept for Virgo, the maiden of the star signs, involved spring and beauty, the promise of freshness and renewal, and lots of flowers! I just had to have all the right things fall into place at the right time. So when my friend Kim posted a photo of her beautiful self in a vast field of blue flowers, my creative mind went wild! I was already hoping to use Kim, whom I've worked with before, as a model for one of the signs, and Virgo seemed the perfect fit for such a lovely soul anyway. I had to act quickly and ask her soon, as spring flowers fade quickly in Ontario's fickle weather! She happily agreed to model and show us the private location, and Sharon and I met at her lovely farm (Stone's Throw Produce, do check them out, such lovely yummies!) for hair and make-up and coffee one lovely spring morning. I should mention that my one-year-old, very independent daughter Skye was tagging along with us. I'm a mom to three young kids, and time with them has to come first. I don't get many moments of time to myself these days, so fitting in some of these shoots meant that Skye would be tagging along. This, it turned out, was never very... helpful. Ah well, c'est la vie. So the four of us piled into my car and headed out to the secret set, located on Kim's relatives' private property. 
  It was an absolutely magical place in the forest, with a virtual sea of blue-violet scilla flowers spreading across the forest floor as far as the eye could see. Awe-inspiring is a great word for this haven. The sun was warm, bees were buzzing all about us, the breeze carried the scent of early blooms, and Skye was finding some fabulous mud puddles. We took a minute to just soak in our surroundings, then quickly went to work, hoping to avoid the midday sun. I had brought a bouquet of daffodils and a diaphanous scarf to catch the light. Sharon wove flowers throughout her tresses, and voila! Kim embodied the Virgo maiden; pure and strong and kind. 
Virgo
  We created some beautiful imagery that day, and the one above graces the calendar. Funny to note is that I did not realize that the maiden was depicted as having wings and a bouquet until well after the shoot! A very happy accident. I mean, I meant to do that... 
  I did consciously fit in some subtle Virgo details; for instance, Virgo is an earth sign, and this landscape is a perfect representation of "earth". There are busy bees because Virgo folks are detail-oriented and organized, and there's a dove and a rainbow for grace and peace. I snuck a rabbit in there because I have a sick sense of humour... rabbits are the symbol for procreation, a bit of a contrast to anything virginal. A halo for innocence tops her off. There's even a tiny "carving" of the Virgo symbol in the wood somewhere, but I think you'd have to view the actual print to spot it. 
  As we were packing up to leave the woods, we saw that Skye had started lunch without us, her mouth covered with delicious mud. What a sight we must have made... a serene lace-clad goddess, a disheveled artist with leaves in her hair, an equipment-laden assistant, and a very dirty and tiny but loud human, piling into my twenty-year-old car. As I looked in my rearview to reverse out the narrow track to the road, I saw another car pull in behind me to block my exit. The property owners had come to see what we were doing. As Kim is a relation of theirs, she got out of my strange car and proceeded toward her understandably annoyed family, who failed to recognize her in her costume! She had to go all the way up to their car and begin talking before they knew it was her! Too funny. They laughingly let us on our way. Don't trespass on private property, my dear readers!
  Here are some alternative images from the Virgo shoot. This one shows off Sharon's handiwork with hair and wildflowers nicely.
Meadow Maiden (Virgo)
  I like that the one above is untouched by introduced elements or colours; it is as the scene appeared before me, pure and simple. Like Virgo.

  This was another gorgeous image that came from that set, but I think the consensus among my team and I was that it didn't quite fit with Virgo. It is gorgeous with its own dreamy narrative: 
Twilight Descends Over Sleeping Beauty (Virgo)
  I appreciate you following along with out project! There are many more stories to come. Please share your favourite posts, and consider small zodiac prints or a gorgeous fine art calendar as gifts this year! 

VIRGO - Aug 23 - Sept 22
Model: Kimberlee Feick Lowry
Hairstyling, Make-up Artist, Assistant: Sharon Lytle 
Photography, editing, concept: Sarah Chisholm