Ymir & Aggayu: The Giants Who Birthed the Earth

The art illustrate the story  of the beginning, before form or order, there was Ymir— the colossal frost giant whose very body became the first landscape of the Nordic world.From his bones came mountains, from his blood the seas, from his hair the forests, and from his skull the vault of the sky. Ymir’s existence was both creation and sacrifice, a cosmic body torn apart so the world could begin.

In this artwork, Ymir does not stand alone. His vast, multicolored form becomes a bridge to another creation giant: Aggayu Sola, the Yoruba Orisha of volcanoes, deserts, and unshakeable earth. Aggayu carries the burning heart of the world within him—the movement of magma, the eruption of continents, the heat that pushes land upward from below. He is the force that lifts humanity as if on his shoulders.

Here, their stories merge into a single mythic being—an ancestor whose body expands across cultures. Limbs overlap, faces blend, and colors erupt like new land forming under pressure. Creaturely heads, distorted eyes, and layered torsos evoke the chaotic moment when earth emerges from raw divine matter. The figure’s feet stand on shimmering gold, suggesting fertile soil created through fire, ice, and sacrifice.

This hybrid titan becomes the father of creation for two civilizations at once—Norse and Yoruba— each recognizing that the world began with a giant powerful enough to hold continents inside his body.

Height: 4ft x 2ft

Media: Polychromatic oil color pencil on Wood with resin

Year: 2025

Artist: Ray A. Tenorio

Custom self-framed artwork by the artist