#threesisters

Sunset Glow over the Three Sisters, Blue Mountains

More about me and prints: https://linktr.ee/steven.sandner

Three of Cups

Back from August 2020: The Three of Cups is a card of community and union between three close relationships, usually women. I thought about three legendary women and remembered the Three Sisters of Native agriculture: a staple in many Native foods. In order of their cultivation, they are the Winter Squash, Maize, and Climbing Beans.

The Three Sisters are planted together and benefit each other in their coexistence. The maize provides a foundation for the beans to climb, the beans provide nutrients to the soil, and the squash on the ground prevents the growth of weeds as well as creating a microclimate that keeps the soil moist. This sort of cohabiting relationship was perfect for this card, and I included bowls of the crops to work in the cup symbology.

I initially didn't know if I wanted to make the Sisters have human-colored skin or plant-colored skin, as I didn't know if any of these colors would be problematic (obviously red is unacceptable). I checked with three of my Native friends to make sure orange, gold, and green would be okay, and they were happy with it. I'm glad the plant colors worked too, because it makes the Sisters seem more like spirits instead of Native women who decided to put a bunch of plants on their heads. Another color I struggled with for a time was with Sister Maize, as obviously corn husks are usually a dark green in color. I was concerned that Sister Beans was already taking up a lot of green, and thought a golden corn husk color would help balance the colors, as well as draw in some of the warmth of the squash colors from the eldest Sister. Because of the presence of both green and warm colors in Sister Squash, she serves as a balance between Sister Maize and Sister Beans.

My favorite part of painting was definitely dotting all the exquisite maize colors. They come in so many beautiful varieties of blues, purples, magentas, whites, yellows, and a dark blue almost green raven-like color. If you would like to read a bit about the Native cultivation of maize and the Western colonization of maize, this interview with botanist Robin Wall Kimmerer is an enlightening read about the sacred properties of the Corn Mother.

Three Sisters is just one of the many Native farming techniques that kept North America alive and vibrant, utilizing different plants' abilities to fertilize the soil in preparation for new growth, and keeping the ecosystems balanced. Western farming techniques in comparison do not use the land to its fullest potential, and we've ruined much of the landscape because of this.

If you were to draw up this card, remember those who support you. Think about the strong feminine presences in your life and how you look out for one another. You are vital to this bond, pulling your weight and beautiful in the eyes of those who love you. Each of you is different, but that's what gives you strength.

If you would like to learn how to cook Native dishes, I recommend the cookbooks The Sioux Chef's Indigenous Kitchen by Sean Sherman and Beth Dooley, and The Mitisitam Cafe Cookbook by Richard Hetzler.