Helga’s Cup, original altered painting by Heather Castles | Upcycled Vintage Art

Helga’s Cup, original altered painting by Heather Castles

Helga’s Cup, original altered painting by Heather Castles

"Helga's Cup"

mixed media on vintage painting
40.5 x 51 cm (16 x 20 inch) canvas
58.5 x 69 cm (23 x 27 inch) frame

Years ago (in the olden days when the Harry Potter books first came out) I took the test to see which house I would be sorted into at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft & Wizardry. At first I was a little disappointed that I was placed in Hufflepuff, as somehow from reading the books I got the impression that Hufflepuff is where all the “leftover” students went!

But then I learned about Helga Hufflepuff.

She was a Welsh witch and one of the four founders of Hogwarts. While the heads of other houses chose students with unique qualities, Helga accepted all students regardless of their skills or abilities… she only required they were loyal and hard-working. I thought that warm acceptance of being “ordinary” was really lovely, as that’s all anyone wants, is to be accepted for who you are.

So I am rather fond of being in Hufflepuff!

With this painting I wanted to celebrate Helga Hufflepuff. I wanted to paint her cup from a time before it became infamous for being turned into a horcrux by He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named. I loved the idea of the moving portraits in the halls at Hogwarts school. I imagined that perhaps Helga left her cup at the breakfast table in her own painting to go visit her friends in the another portrait.

Collected locally in Ontario, the original painting on canvas by unknown artist, c.1980.

Frame : The frame and canvas are in excellent condition. Wired and ready for wall display.

Altered Muggle Art : With this collection, I’m capturing magical moments from my non-magical “muggle” point of view. By taking vintage artworks and altering them to depict magical places and creatures, I am creating a historical fiction around the idea that the world of wizards was real.

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