Astrology of Today’s News

     Kevin Warsh has been confirmed by the US Senate as chair of the Federal Reserve, one of the most powerful roles in the federal government that holds enormous sway over the economy.

At a 54-45 Senate vote it was most divisive confirmation vote for the position in history. He will officially step into the role on 14 May, when the term of outgoing Fed chair, Jerome Powell ends, taking over as the central bank faces immense pressure from the Trump administration to lower rates, even as inflation climbs and war in the Middle East continues.  Analysts say he faces “a hellishly difficult task” to protect the independence of the Bank from political pressure.

  Born 13 April 1970 in New York,  he has a determined though stressed Sun Aries inconjunct Pluto which in turn is trine a redoubtable Mars in Taurus. He also has an up-and-down Jupiter in Scorpio opposition Saturn in Taurus with Mercury Venus also in Taurus. Plus an edgy Uranus inconjunct Saturn. A Taurus stellium will suit him for a financial career and he’ll certainly be stubborn. But he’ll find problems settling into a steady direction with two central inconjuncts.

  He is an odd playmate for Trump since KW’s Pluto squares DT’s Sun and Moon so he may resist some of the pressure; KW’s Uranus is conjunct DT’s Neptune and square his Mercury for miscommunications; KW’s Saturn squares DT’s Pluto for cooperation on major issues but also given to obduracy on both sides; and KW’s Mars squares DT’s Mars and sits on DT’s Midheaven which could help him progress Trump’s ambitions but it could just as easily turn competitive.

 Their relationship chart has an unstable composite Sun inconjunct an enthusiastic Jupiter and is showing signs of disturbance through early this June and again mid December to spring 2027 as tr Uranus squares the composite Pluto. Plus a phase of panicky confusion August to late December this year with tr Pluto square the composite Neptune.

 The US Federal Reserve chart, 16 November 1914 9am Washington, DC, is in a worrisome droop at the moment with the SA Neptune exactly conjunct the Sun; with jolting shocks and insecurity mid June to early July and again late this year with tr Uranus square the Mars. With a final disappointing and disorientating tr Neptune square the Saturn Pluto early November 2026 to late January 2027. Major arguments will brew through 2027/28 with tr Pluto square the Mercury and Moon.

  Chiron moving into Taurus on June 19^th to stay until 2033 will shift the culture though in subtle ways which may not be immediately obvious.

  The recent Chiron in Aries since 2018 would turn a focus on problems of identity with a compensatory emphasis/over-emphasis on “I am”. Which fits both Donald Trump in his 1^st Term and Boris Johnson dancing to the “I am the greatest” fanfare, which is a cover up for “I am an empty shell with no idea who I am inside” pseudo-identity. The aftermath and ongoing divorce from the EU over Brexit as the UK faced up to going-it-alone could also be part of it. The rise of populism which is essentially a selfish movement. #MeToo Movement = I will not be overlooked.  At a stretch, the echo chamber/divisive syndrome also can be put down to people clinging desperately to the like-me tribe in order to shore up a shaky sense of self-esteem and identity.

 Melanie Reinhart also mentions ‘life changing initiatory illness, which includes sickness in our sense of self.’

Chiron in Taurus has a tendency to undermine a sense of feeling solid or safe. Issues around wealth and money. Tendency to take everything literally not symbolically. Identify with our wounded instincts which would have the advantage of making our mistreatment of the earth be taken personally and acted on. Healthy relationship with the body.  Live by our own values. Creative transformation of emotional energy which would otherwise to be turned to vengeance. Helps others in their creative endeavours.

 One problem looking back on earlier instances of Chiron in Taurus is extrapolating what can be ascribed to Chiron rather than other influences of the time.

Chiron in Aries 1968 to 1976

It started with booming post-war expansion but into the early 1970s there was a shift into high inflation and high unemployment. The collapse of the Bretton Woods monetary system in 1971 and the 1973 oil crisis, led to Western economies faced severe industrial unrest and stagnant growth.

Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin became the first humans to walk on the moon. First Human Heart Transplant. The precursor to the modern internet sent its first message.

The early 1970s saw the wind-down of the Vietnam War, and Nixon Visits China ending decades of Sino-American isolation and reshaping the Cold War.

There were pioneering environmental campaigns.

 Watergate, Bloody Sunday in Northern Ireland and Munich Olympics Massacre.

Chiron in Taurus 1976 to 1983

The late 1970s saw increased geopolitical tensions and energy crises. The Camp David Accords were signed, brokering peace between Egypt and Israel. In Guyana, over 900 members of the Peoples Temple cult died in the Jonestown massacre.

The Iranian Revolution began, leading to the hostage crisis.  Margaret Thatcher became the first female UK Prime Minister. The Soviet Union invaded Afghanistan, and the Three Mile Island nuclear accident occurred in the US.

The first Apple Computer was sold.

The early 1980s saw the intensification of the Cold War, the birth of the PC and MTV era, the onset of the AIDS epidemic, and major political shifts under Ronald Reagan and Margaret Thatcher.

Chiron in Taurus 1927 to 1933

The peak and sudden collapse of post-WWI economic prosperity, Wall Street Crash, the Great Depression.

Penicillin Discovered, the world’s first antibiotic. The first electronic television.  Aviation firsts. Pluto Discovered. Neutron discovered (reshaping nuclear physics.

Independence for Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa.

Stalin consolidates power. Political extremism in Europe, and massive infrastructure achievements. Japan invaded Manchuria.

 The previous Chiron in Taurus 1876 to 1883 fell in the middle of the two decade Long Depression from 1870 to 1890.

 History is constantly churning no matter what is going on in the celestial sphere though from the above there seems to be a pattern of economic peaks and then troughs; plus significant scientific advances especially in medicine. And in the recent two Chiron in Taurus increasing campaigns for environmental protection.  

Nul points for Russell Brand’s latest book How to Become a Christian in Seven Days from reviewers who have taken great delight in ridiculing the first offering from Tucker Carlson’s new publishing outfit.  

“With its lewd jokes and word-vomit prose, the comedian’s account of his conversion is enough to put anyone off Christianity.” His “disturbing memoir is an offence against God.”

“The paranoid, pseudy gospel of Russell Brand … is an unbelievable slog.”

 “Writers are often advised to write like they speak. Brand should neither write like he speaks, nor, let’s face it, speak like he speaks …. Brand has swallowed a dictionary, and it is not coming out again via his mouth.”

 “Read aloud, Brand’s ravings would make him hard to distinguish from your average madman droning into a microphone about the end times while brandishing a cardboard sign outside a provincial shopping centre.” Why was he ever taken seriously?”

“He exhibits pressure of speech fuelled by a flight of ideas. Both are characteristic of the hypomanic phase of bipolar disorder, which Brand says he has suffered from, and both can characterise cocaine use, with which he says he has also been familiar. It is not a good frame of mind in which to write a book.”

Brand, born 4 June 1975 midnight Basildon, England, was once a darling of the left, and deemed amongst the world’s top 50 thinkers, before he descended into anti-vaxxer conspiracy land populated by shadowy global elites and vested interests. His conversion to christianity came a few months after he was accused of sexual assault, rape and emotional abuse, all denied. The trial starts this October.  

 Whether his midnight birth was 12.01 am or 11.59pm, he has similar house placings. His Gemini Sun is opposition a 10^th house Neptune conjunct the pugnacious Fixed star Antares. Astrology King describes Neptune conjunct Antares as shrewd, cunning, unbalanced and mentally unsound, secretive but apparently candid, dishonest, untruthful, strange religious ideas amongst other attributes.

 I would incline towards a 12.15am and after birth time since it gives an Aquarius Ascendant; and an Aries Moon conjunct Mars opposition an 8^th house Pluto. His childhood was troubled with split parents, a sick mother, difficulties with his stepfather, drugs in his teens and a father who introduced him to prostitutes in Thailand.

 Uranus falls in his 9^th house of spiritual/religious beliefs which would incline him towards oddball theories fuelled by his deep seated fears from an 8^th house Pluto opposition Mars.  He is a prime candidate with that placing for a ‘big brother is watching you’ mindset – and now that he has flipped into religion a demonic Satan fills the bill. It would be sad if he did not insist on strutting endless hours on the public stage.

 Melanie Rheinhart remarks of Chiron in the 3^rd which he has – that while it has produced great thinkers, it can also bring a fear of the mind disintegrating or ‘subject to storms of incomprehensible activity.’

 He is not facing an easy road ahead with tr Neptune conjunct his Moon, then opposing his Pluto and conjunct his Mars through the next few years.

 Also born on 4 June 1975 is Angelina Jolie.

Trump en route to tackle the dragon in Beijing for the first US state visit in ten years, accompanied by tech leaders including Elon Musk and Tim Cook, is expected to tackle the Iran question, Taiwan, trade, AI and drugs.

 There are fears that his inability to find closure over the Strait of Hormuz impasse which China also wants opened may weaken US support for Taiwan.

 Trump’s chart relocated to Beijing is hardly inspiring with a tough-slog Saturn in the 6^th; an unsettled Uranus in the 4^th so unsettled foundations under his feet; his bellicose Mars Pluto straddling the Descendant – and as ever a money-oriented Jupiter in the 8^th though elusive Neptune is also in the 8^th.

 His relationship chart with Xi Jinping (both Sun Geminis) has a power-struggling, tussle-for-the-upper-hand Jupiter Pluto conjunction with an overdose of slippery and superficial Neptunian friendliness. On the midpoints there is a tr Pluto opposition the Mars/Jupiter midpoint at the moment which can be successful though also opportunistic. Where it will run into trouble is late June right through till November with tensions erupting and disappointments.

 If Trump’s take off time of 2.37pm Washington, DC, represents the start of the visit – it has a grandstanding Pluto in the 5^th (= distraction tactic); a superficially charming Venus in the 10^th; a needs-support Moon in the 7^th plus unreliable Neptune and chilly Saturn also in the 7th house of relationships. A hidden Mars in the financial 8^th squares Jupiter so echoing his relationship with Xi Jinping. There may be attempts to do financial deals out of sight.

 Xi Jinping has his own troubles to finesse with his 3^rd Term chart, 23 October 2022, labouring under a blocked Solar Arc Pluto square the Sun and Venus now and on for several months. Plus a fairly catastrophic feel from the Bank of China chart, 1 December 1948, as both tr Neptune and Solar Arc Neptune hard aspect the Mars Jupiter bringing financial calamities and disappointment through this year; with more tensions piling on from this August to the end of the year.

Melania is ducking out of this trip and with tr Pluto square her Taurus Sun she is under considerable pressure, until late this June and again on and off till late 2027. Her midpoints are also stressed through the same period. She will be jolted and jangled by tr Uranus conjunct her Mars this August through October and again in 2027. It must be odd being in the inner circle and watching Trump in a constant state of bile and vituperation about everyone and everything. Their relationship will by upending in some way in the first half of this June, and again mid December into spring 2027 as tr Uranus squares their composite Pluto; with a sinking sense of confusion early August to late December 2026.

Add ON: Xi Jinping played to Trump‘s ego with a display of imperial pomp rarely afforded a US leader but with an ominous warning about Taiwan and the risk of war between the US and China. Xi opened with a loaded reference to the so-called ‘Thucydides Trap’, which appeared to go over Trump’s head though it has been a phrase in circulation in the US over the past decade. It refers to the war between Athens and Sparta, with the danger of conflict when an established power feels threatened by a rising civilization. In the Thucydides example of the Peloponnesian War it changed the ancient Greek world. Athens lost its dominance, was economically devastated and never regained its pre-war prosperity.

 It was started in 431 BC as tr Pluto was in late stage Capricorn about to enter Aquarius and Neptune was just into Aries and the war did not finish until 404 BC when tr Pluto was moving into Pisces and Neptune just into Gemini along with Uranus. The astrological similarities are striking.

  Not I hasten to add that there is any indication of a world-shaking US-China conflict ahead.

A cheerful prediction from the renowned French astrologer the late Andre Barbault about a basket of good fortune approaching this July.

The new-era Pluto in Aquarius trine Uranus in Gemini sextile Neptune in Aries, all at four degrees, will be embraced by Jupiter at 4 degrees Leo to form a lucky Half Grand Sextile around the 20^th July.

 He predicted the 2020 pandemic as a cyclical low and regarded the 2026 Saturn-Neptune conjunction as a reflowering, with the late-July 2026 basket configuration as its crescendo.

 According to Barbault, nine whole “ascending planetary cycles” – as he refers to them – will occur concurrently in 2026, ushering in a new “Golden Era” for humanity with societies becoming more humanistic and poverty contained.

 He did have a particularly rosy view of this time – “The peculiarity of the turning point of 2026-2030 is represented by the centrality of the Saturn-Neptune conjunction at the beginning of Aries… Nucleus of convergence of the verb Neptunian, vital priority reinforced by the concurrence of deep Saturnian foundations… We are faced with the possibility of a change such as to make the terms “change” or “upheaval” seem too weak to define the breadth of what could transform in the known world.”

  His record in prediction is good, pointing to the crises of the communist regimes in 1989-1990 and the rapid ascent of China and of other Asian countries between 2010 and 2025.

  I am not familiar with his cycle theory and while the new age of enlightenment and humanitarianism seems like a distant dream at the moment – we can always travel hopefully. And the August Solar Eclipse does point to frustrating problems finding a solution and thus reducing tension.

 A fun thought in dreary times.

Alexandra Ocasio-Cortez, the New York congresswoman, is talked up as a presidential hopeful from the ranks of the struggling Democratic Party. She is described as ‘progressive, left-wing and left-wing populist’ and she certainly has the chart of an activist.

 Born 13 October 1989 11.50am New York, she has an assertive and ambitious 10^th house Mars and Sun in Libra in her 10^th; with her Mars in an impulsive square to Jupiter opposition a hope-to-improve-society Saturn Neptune in Capricorn. Her Jupiter is also in a confident trine to Pluto.

  Her Mercury in Libra close to her Midheaven from the rhetorical 9^th opposes her upfront Aries Moon and squares Uranus making her doubly outspoken on issues that concern her. Plus she has a devoted-to-a-cause Aquarius North Node in her communication 3^rd house. Her main objective is to get her message across.

  Her Jupiter in Cancer connects to the US Cancer Sun but her brusquely assertive Mars squares the US Sun so she will rub many up the wrong way.

In 2028 her Solar Arc Midheaven will conjunct her Pluto which is usually not favourable; and although tr Jupiter is moving across her 10^th for a hint of success, she also has tr Neptune opposition her Midheaven, again not career supportive.

 By 2033 tr Neptune will be opposition her focal point Mars for a sense of disappointment.

 Being part of the triple conjunction in Capricorn generation she will be labouring under tr Neptune in square Uranus, Saturn, Neptune through till 2030. After that tr Pluto in Aquarius will conjunct her Solar Arc Uranus Neptune Saturn right through the 2030s. So a tough furrow to plough with many sinkholes to get across. She will continue to rise towards a peak starting around 2040 onwards with tr Saturn crossing her midheaven and on.   

  From an across-the-ocean standpoint several things are against her. The UK may have voted in Maggie Thatcher but it had a history of three great queens, so females were not an anomaly. The USA has not. Secondly political gravity is  tilted to the right politically in the US so any hint of what is slammed as ‘socialist’ or even ‘communist’ which in Europe would be regarded as centrist, becomes a no-hoper.  

  It is what Rahm Emmanuel referred to after the last election when he said the Democrats had been talking to themselves and not listening to the electorate. Political success is about realpolitik and pragmatism. Zealous idealists tend not to fit the bill.

  The rainbow dream that died has left South African marked by inequality, with one of the world’s highest rates of murder and entrenched youth unemployment; cratered, litter-strewn roads; water and power more often than not switched off in townships like Soweto. Wealth and land have stayed largely in white hands or moved to a small, politically connected elite within the ANC, which is plagued by corruption and mismanagement claims.

  All of which has led to a revision of the ‘saintly’ Nelson Mandela and the legacy he left as well as a revisioning of his former wife Winnie. She was an international symbol of resistance to apartheid but latterly became mired in personal and political scandal with accusations of corruption and murder. A journalist who knew her in the early days said her tragedy was that she was coarsened by her brutal treatment at the hands of the authorities. She was tortured, subjected to house arrest, kept under surveillance, held in solitary confinement for over a year.

  One Soweto resident said: ““Her radical views now seem more relevant than the sentimentality attached to Nelson Mandela”. Her biographer said the recent revamping of her reputation  “comes from disappointment with the transition that Mandela made. The movement that has picked her up and resurrected her is a movement of anger and disappointment, and Nelson Mandela is the abiding symbol of that disappointment.”

“Winnie fought for people who live in shacks. She would be doing that today. She would be fighting for water, for power, to stop violence against women — these are crises in South Africa.”

 When Nelson Mandela because President in a moment of high hopes and great expectations in 1994 on 10 May 12.18pm Pretoria, a Taurus New Moon was close to the Midheaven from the expansive, rhetoric-boosting 9^th. What might have given pause for thought is the South Node exactly conjunct the Midheaven plus Algol opposition Pluto conjunct the North Node in the 4^th hinting at internal problems for a supressed populace ahead. The South Node can be a hint of a reversion to the past rather than a move to develop a future path.

 1994 did see a Uranus Return on the South Africa 31 May 1910 chart, which at the time seemed like a bright new dawn. But like Putin taking over Russia in 1999/2000 on a Uranus Return to the Russia 1917 chart it did not deliver what was expected in terms of positive change.

 Winnie Mandela, 26 September 1934, was a Sun Libra inconjunct rebellious Uranus. Her determined, confident T square of Jupiter Mercury in Libra opposition Uranus square Pluto, would give her a tendency to be dominating and coercive though could also suggest she was in some ways ahead of her time. She also had Mars in Leo opposition Saturn which would make her familiar with harsh treatment.

 What appeared to have done her most damage was her arrest in 1969 when she was held in a condemned cell, tortured and in solitary confinement for nearly 500 days. At that point tr Uranus was conjunct her Sun but more significantly tr Pluto was conjunct her Solar Arc Mars opposition SA Saturn which would be a brutalizing experience.

Her get-it-together 5th Harmonic was strong; as was her seeking-soul 7H; the obsessive-dream 11H and her leaving-a-legacy 17H.

  Nelson Mandela, 18 July 1918 2.54pm (?) Umtata, South Africa, was a Sun Cancer inconjunct Uranus giving him an urge for freedom; with a confident Jupiter Pluto conjunct in Cancer trine Uranus and square Mars. When he became President in 1994 tr Uranus Neptune was opposition his Sun and tr Pluto in Scorpio was trine turning his former life upside down. 

A new Netflix documentary series on Winnie Mandela has prompted a fresh look at her. Whether it has much effect on South Africa’s near future is uncertain. The 1910 chart does have tr Uranus conjunct the Gemini Sun in 2027 but whether that is strong enough to being about the complete reworking of a rotten political system remains to be seen.

Shock horror – vibrant, successful showbusiness couple, seemingly a model of togetherness, separate after 22 year marriage.

  My astonishment is that fans never seem to grasp that the outside of a marriage is never what the inside is like, even with ordinary folk. And exponentially so in most cases where entertainment duos are concerned.

 Tess Daly, 29 March 1969, an English television presenter and former model is best known for co-presenting the BBC Strictly Come Dancing (2004–2025). She married Vernon Kay, 28 April 1974, a broadcaster and former model, now a staple of BBC radio. They married in 2003 and have two children. In 2010, he was forced to apologise to his wife after it was revealed in the press that he had been sending sexually explicit text and social media messages to a model every day for four months; and similar to “four or five” other women at the same time.

  As reported by the Mail, a friend close to the couple admitted they don’t have a lot in common anymore, and they’ve “aged differently.” The source said: “Tess needs to find a rich, older man with a yacht, while Vernon is still a big kid. He loves going out and having a good time, he loves to have a drink and a laugh.”

 Tess is an independent-minded, lucky, confident and go-ahead Sun Aries opposition Uranus Jupiter in Libra and trine Mars in Sagittarius. A yod of Neptune sextile Pluto inconjunct Saturn Venus in Aries will make her self-reliant, serious, well-organised. Plus a flamboyant Leo Moon. Her Mercury is in a determined, can-be-obstinate opposition to Pluto.

 He is a Sun Mercury in indulgent Taurus on the focal point of a yod inconjunct Pluto and Neptune so will have problems modulating his ego and will power, veering from under to over- confident. Another yod of Sun sextile Jupiter is inconjunct an apex planet Pluto which can be controlling. His hard-edged Mars Saturn is mellowed by a trine to Jupiter but challenged in a square to Pluto. Not an easy chart. A complex character.

  Very different temperaments. Evidently they don’t do much together anymore, have different interests and hobbies.

  Their relationship chart is stark with a potential for serious strain from composite can-be-dominating Mars Pluto trine Saturn and Sun inconjunct Mars. Though the composite Sun trine Jupiter would smooth round rough edges at times and Jupiter square Mars Pluto would bring excitement and a power-couple vibe.

 The wedding chart from 12 September 2003 with an affectionate Sun, Mercury, Venus conjunction also had the Sun square Pluto for hints of over control; with an adventurous Jupiter opposition a sparky Mars Uranus conjunction. And a yod onto apex dreamy but illusory Neptune.

 What is always fascinating is to see wedding charts, with the date presumably picked for other reasons, usually echoing the themes of the relationship chart.  In this case Mars Jupiter looms large in both which can bring a surge of over confidence, can be successful and also opportunistic. Sometimes it accompanies a seemed-a-good-idea-at-the-time feeling which turns out to have been overly impulsive.  

 Not all that glitters is what it appears on the surface. But they do appear to be making a civilized business of the separation which is laudable.

Please add below. Older posts under News on top bar or in Search.

Henry Moore’ sculptures are having a spectacular at Kew with Monumental Nature being the largest ever outdoor exhibition of his work. The greatest British sculptor of the 20th century, his works when they are on sale go for many millions.

  His story is a fascinating one. Born on 30 July 1898 in Castleford, England, the seventh of eight children, to a father who was under-manager at the local colliery, but self- educated with an interest in music and literature, he was pushed through formal education to ensure he did not end up in the mines. Moore is said to have decided to become a sculptor when he was eleven after hearing of Michelangelo’s achievements though his family were against it, seeing sculpture as manual labour. Injured during WW1 in a gas attack, on getting out of the army, he took an Arts degree.

 His wife Irina Radestsky, 26 March 1907 Kiev, in contrast, had wealthy parents, spent her early childhood in Moscow and St Petersburg, lost her father in the 1917 Russian revolution, was deposited with her grandmother in Crimea who died of cancer, leaving Irina, aged 11, suffering terrible deprivation and hunger. Her flighty mother appeared a year later and took her pitifully thin daughter to Paris and thence to her boyfriend’s parents in the English Home Counties, from where she made her way to the Royal College of Art where Henry was the sculpture tutor.

  What is striking is that both had strong Mars Pluto Saturn aspects in their charts. Wildly different backgrounds yet a shared experience of deprivation, hardship and fear instilling resilience and a steely determination.

 Henry Moore was known for his boundless energy and ‘his striking combination of focus and restlessness’.

  He had a Leo Sun which sat on one leg of a talented Half Grand Sextile from a hard-edged, disciplined Mars in Gemini opposition Saturn, sextile/trine Jupiter in Libra and his Sun. His Mars trine Jupiter sextile Sun would give him enthusiasm and confidence; his Sun trine Saturn sextile Jupiter added a balancing seriousness to his actions.

  His creative Venus in practical Virgo was in a passionately enthusiastic square to Mars, an intense square to Pluto and an imaginative square to Neptune. The combination of Neptune Pluto, of that generation, was not only ambitious it was also given to psychic or super-intuitive abilities. In Vedic astrology Venus is the significator of the eyes. His daughter describes him as “a kind of human, three-dimensional photocopier”, with a knack for measuring weights and distances by eye and instinct, an invaluable skill in a sculptor who might start with a tiny hand maquette that has to be scaled up to stand 40ft tall in a plaza.”

His Saturn was conjunct Uranus in final degree Scorpio which can be autocratic but can also combine inventiveness with practicality so necessary in creating sculptures.  His Moon was late Sagittarius or Capricorn.

 Irina, born 26 March 1907 in Kiev, was a Sun Aries square Jupiter Neptune in Cancer with a Leo Moon which would chime with his Sun Leo; with a friendly, detached Venus in Aquarius which would echo his workaholic Venus in Virgo. Most strikingly she had Mars opposition Pluto square Saturn, a hint of her terrifying and deprived childhood.  His Mars Pluto Saturn experiences were different but they would understand each other’s mindset.  Their relationship chart was replete with Jupiter aspects which would smooth round rough edges.

 Henry Moore’s harmonic charts are illuminating with strong creative 5^th and 7^th harmonics, humanitarian 9^th, helper 12H, genius/breaking with the orthodox 13H and global star 22H.

  Mars Pluto Saturn does have a resonance with ‘monumental’ at the better end of its effect.

ADD ON: Paul Nash, 11 May 1889 was an official World War One artist whose paintings like The Menin Road are among the most iconic images of the conflict. He was a Sun Taurus square Saturn in Leo, with a marked Mars Pluto Neptune conjunction in Gemini.

Anselm Kiefer, 8 March 1945, born after WW11, faced Germany’s past head on in his paintings – the Nazi rule, the horrors of the Holocaust. ‘His works are characterised by an unflinching willingness to confront his culture’s dark past, and unrealised potential. He was a Sun Pisces, with Mars in Aquarius opposition Pluto.