Projects > LUCKY LOVE

painting by Julie McNiel
LuckyLove in the Underground Palace
mixed media on wood panel
11 3/4" x 8'
2009

LuckyLove is a fictional character with several names, including Huck Fi, Feng Feng, and Lucky Maple. Before she was born, she lived in the spirit world, and journeyed through a Dante-esque landscape of many levels; eventually to be re-born into the body of a girl living in the 21st century.

Here is the beginning of her story:

My adventurous travels took me through many levels of experience. One of the most disturbing landscapes that I encountered was that of a city of the tombs of unfortunates. There, I arrived, on my raft of logs lashed together. Departing the river, I entered the Underground Palace, a complex maze of tunnels, hundreds of dark and ghost-filled rooms, blazing fires and hell dogs. This palace contained an infinite bank piled high with gold, jade, and other luxuries. An enormous god, judge of souls, ruled this palace. To my knowledge, I managed to evade his gaze, by becoming invisible to the numerous watchful eyes, and remained nameless... Or maybe it was that cup of Five Flavored Tea of Forgetfulness that Old Lady Meng gave me one eve, which resulted in some amnesia about the details of the whole situation.