(Detail)
One of the very first digital painting I realized with a larger scale ; the theme of the woman and the lion is borrowed from the eleventh major arcana of Tarot, Strength (or Forza in Italian decks).
Strength is nothing brutal here, to the contrary. It is standing for one of the four cardinal virtues, (i.e. ἀνδρεία andreia courage). This Strength tells us of moral strength, which is understanding and domesticating, persevering with fortitude and gentleness, to finally go past physical limitations.
A text following this idea that I wrote some time afterwards…
Another tale that this card reminds me of, that I read in my childhood, is the tale of Androcles. Androcles was a Roman runaway slave, who encounters a wounded lion in the deserts of Africa. Instead of running away, he removes the thorn in its foot pad and cures it.
Later on, as he tries to return to civilization, he is imprisoned for being a fugitive, and condemned to be devoured by wild animals in the Coliseum. But the wild beast turns out to be the same lion he saved, and he is left unscathed. The Emperor, impressed by this unusual scene, grants him his pardon, and he is freed and covered with flowers, with the lion.
This is my personal blog/portfolio where I discuss a variety of subjects, from technology to arts (graphical or culinary), metaphysics or Chinese culture. 
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