“In the beginning…” The Zelda series feels like it has a multitude of beginnings. The series itself began in the 8-bit era of the NES, but chronologically, Skyward Sword is the first game in the series and tells the tale of the forging of the Master Sword as well as Demise’s dastardly curse. Breath of the Wild started a whole new path for the series and welcomed slews of new fans. Of course, every Zelda game is someone’s first time playing the franchise. In terms of the lore though, Ocarina of Time introduces players to the very beginning, the creation of Hyrule. It recounts how the three goddesses created the world of Hyrule from nothingness. Din sculpted the land, Nayru crafted the laws and the order that ruled the kingdom, and Farore blessed it with life. Giz-art captures this dance of creation in their stunning piece of art titled “The Very Beginning.”
Because of its position in the center of the piece as well as the fierce, glowing brightness of the lava, many eyes will be initially drawn to Din and her creation. Out of the dust and debris of the void, she has created a mighty volcano. Lava flows down cracks in the fiery mountain, but the audience’s focus is most likely above that. A crimson spectral vision of the goddess reaches her hand above her and a huge stream of lava jets upward.
Following the white-hot creation of Din, the audience may find themselves looking towards the left side of the art. Here, they find Nayru and her creation though it may be a little harder to find her than Din. In comparison to Din’s form which is easily seen to resemble a woman, the form of Nayru is more ethereal and less focused. Her face is not as clearly seen as Din’s. This may be due to the contrasting gifts of the divine beings. While Din created things of mass and material, Nayru created concepts that aren’t physically seen: law and order. These are not things made of matter that we can physically see. They are actions we can observe brought about by nature and living beings. Because of the immaterial nature of her blessing, Nayru appears more ghostly.
Despite her spectral appearance, Nayru is no less important than her fiery sister. A wave can be seen crashing against Din’s magma masterpiece, and next to the wave, we can see a wispy hand that belongs to Nayru. Despite being graced with less physical form than Din, Nayru still commands some power of Din’s creation. The fires can rage and burn and burst forth from its stony prison, but it must still answer to Nayru’s laws just as surely as the cooling waters of the waves can still the lava in its tracks.
The final goddess floats on the right side of the piece, floating over a lush strip of land. Two hands float above the green hillside: one on the right that seems to be holding something and one on the left that appears to be sprinkling glowing white seeds upon the land. Farore’s planting the sprouts of life in the world.
It’s also worth mentioning that the position of Farore’s arm looks very similar to someone giving a hug. Perhaps the bestower of life knows that that same life can sometimes be fragile and need to be protected. In this way, the goddess’s protective positioning foreshadows Link’s role as hero and protector of Hyrule.
A final element worth mentioning is the background that the three divine beings and their creations are set against. They float within a beautiful backdrop of the night sky. The moon appears near Nayru and often is associated with wisdom which is appropriate given that Nayru’s slice of the Triforce reflects that trait. The mixing of the colors representing each of the goddesses is also breathtakingly beautiful as the scarlet and cerulean hues mix to create a stunning purple on the left side as a pale yellow is sparked into being on the right. Through this art, giz-art treats fans to a sparkling, swirling nebula showing the creation of Hyrule and the majesty of the three golden goddesses.
