The Curse of Hades by Jennifer Bruce

Title:	The Curse of Hades
Date Created:	June 2025
Copyright:	© Jennifer Bruce
Genre:	Horror
Mediums:	Watercolor, Gouache, Photoshop, Procreate
Views:	136
Posted:	12/8/2025

Location: Michigan

The illustration's theme is the Greek myth of Persephone and Hades. I've often seen the story told as a "forbidden love" type of tale, but that strikes me as romanticizing kidnapping and possible sexual abuse. In the first piece, you can see Hades trying to feed Persephone Pomegranate seeds. In the myths, eating food from the Underworld will make the person eating it unable to leave. I've used that in this context to represent how abuse affects the minds of victims, chaining them to continued trauma and suffering throughout their lives.