Hi, I am Cleo.
I am the artist and creator of The Cave Dweller.
My work is shaped by a love for the sacred and eternal. It is built upon a wellspring of ancient texts. I draw from the symbols, stories, and forms preserved in myth and tradition.
I am in my 30s and one of the few things I know about myself is that I *must* create…
Ahg, I don’t know why writing these bios makes me nauseous, haha…trying to describe myself or my work in words feels like I am either going to the loo in front of you or ripping my heart out of my chest and handing it to you… there is no in-between…
Elder Joseph the Cave Dweller
I have named my website the Cave dweller inspired by Elder Joseph the Cave Dweller. He was a Hesychast that sometimes lived in a cave.
“This practice of seeking freedom from the passions, acquiring attention, stillness, quiet and entering into prayer in order to achieve complete union with God is known as hesychasm from the Greek word which means “stillness, rest, quiet, silence”. Elder Joseph is one of the most recent examples of a hesychast: one who practices hesychasm. Many of the great saints throughout history witness to this practice and affirm that the Christian Faith is not simply a routine or a habit but must be a personal experience of the living Christ. Like Elder Joseph, holy men like St. Gregory Palamas and St. Symeon the New Theologian taught that we cannot experience God through education, philosophy, intellectual discussion and debates. God is a person with whom we are to be in a relationship, not a topic to be discussed or facts to memorize. They taught that God desires that we know Him, to experience Him, to share His life, to become one with Him.”
Q: Where do you live?
A: Emotionally, in a 19th century moss cottage. Physically, too close to a Starbucks (Victoria, Australia).
Q: What do you do?
A: I use art to, hopefully, partake in the eternal string of myth and story telling.
Q: Why mythology?
A: Myths aren’t just stories, they’re eternal truths, poetic structures for the ineffable.
Q: Favorite philosopher?
A: Plotinus.
Q: What’s your vibe?
A: Somewhere between a Christian mystic and a creature who lives in a foggy forest collecting leaves, feathers and too many books.
Q: Who’s your favourite mythic figure?
A: King Arthur or Beowulf the dragon slayer
Q: What do you want people to feel when they see your art?
A: Like childhood.
Q: Coffee or tea?
A: Both? Coffee is my main vice…the addiction is real. Tea before bed, chamomile.
Q: Sweet or savoury?
A: Sweet…massive sweet tooth.
Q: Morning or night?
A: In this part of my life, Night. The quiet stillness of the world asleep, the few moments when my mind actually works.
Q: Favourite weather?
A: Overcast, maybe lightly raining.
Q: Do you believe in the power of fate?
A: No. I believe in providence.
Q: Favorite animal?
A: Crow
Q: Introvert or extrovert?
A: Deep introvert
Q: Comfort activity?
A: Reading books I’ve read a million times before. The familiar words bring me comfort. I would like to start a common place journal this year.
Q: Are you sentimental?
A: Yes.
Q: Do you believe in beauty?
A: Always. Beauty is a glimpse of the eternal.
