Thank you very much. As she's so popular, I may even crucify her three times... We'll see.
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Bobnearled = Bobinder
- Thread starter bobinder
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Here on CF no one worries about that. I have been nailed and raised so many times I have lost count, but I keep coming back for more.
Yes, very encouraging to know you can do an encore - an opportunity sadly denied the original victims. But as you say, we can repeat the performance here indefinitely!Here on CF no one worries about that. I have been nailed and raised so many times I have lost count, but I keep coming back for more.
Hondoboot2
QUAESTOR PULCHRITUDINIS
Excellent artwork Bobinder. I like the exotic slaves
YES, DON'T YOU JUST? AND PEOPLE WONDER WHY I DRINK.Here on CF no one worries about that. I have been nailed and raised so many times I have lost count, but I keep coming back for more.
Thessela
Beloved slavegirl
Oh that depends who I am crucified with
I thought you had no choice?
Yes please!
Remake - Remodel
'I tried but I could not find a way.
Looking back, all I did was look away.
Next time is the best time, we all know.
But if there is no next time, where to go?
She's the sweetest queen I've ever seen -
(CPL 593H)
See here she comes, see what I mean?'
(From 'Remake - Remodel' by Bryan Ferry and Roxy Music 1972)
When Iulia sat for a portrait drawing ('Espoir Sketch') she probably had no idea of the developmental path it would take. A further profile portrait resulted in 'Seditio Sicarii 11', and In the 'East of Eden' series she appears in paintings 8 and 14. In both of these, I attempted awkward poses in Gouache watercolour on A4. The challenge was compounded by a profile view in 8 and a three-quarter view in 14.
The profile view was a good opportunity to demonstrate the simple construction of a low cross, formed using a short stake with a forked top and a half-round split log patibulum. However, it leaves small scope for demonstrating the length of the patibulum, and this is implied by the arm bent over the top. With wrists nailed to the back of the beam and the victim effectively suspended by the elbows, knees bent beyond a right angle, this is the obvious method for accommodating a tall subject on a short cross. Such physical compression allowed me to paint in a reasonably large scale with the figure filling the paper.
Being unable to find any suitable references for the pose, I had to imagine how somebody would look in this position, sideways on. I also wanted to convey the impression of collapsed body weight, hanging unconscious from the awkwardly secured arms and I hoped the long hair would contribute to this effect. The result is bit like a William Blake figure, with long legs and a short torso, but I was being ambitious. One day somebody may post a suitable photo, which I can compare for accuracy.
When I acquired a computer, I used Iulia's face in an early CG blending experiment in Windows Paint with Puvis de Chavannes' Hope ('Espoir apres Puvis de Chavannes 1'). This proved the potential of the computer graphic medium but the results were not very dramatic. How far, I wondered, could I push the bounds of credibility in Windows Paint? The answers were 'CG experiments 3 & 4'. Now I was ready to remake - remodel Iulia as I had never seen her before!
I used a more exhausted expression in 'Via Appia 12', although I still intend to use the terrified versions in future manips. Comparison of 'Via Appia 12k sepia' and its colour equivalent reveals how I was striving to get realistic arm and shoulder tension effects late in the development of the picture. All the way from the fingers to the rib cage I have made substantial changes. With such a record of development, Iulia has been remade - remodelled at every stage, and as she has not yet been in Photoshop, I believe we have not seen the last of her.
'I tried but I could not find a way.
Looking back, all I did was look away.
Next time is the best time, we all know.
But if there is no next time, where to go?
She's the sweetest queen I've ever seen -
(CPL 593H)
See here she comes, see what I mean?'
(From 'Remake - Remodel' by Bryan Ferry and Roxy Music 1972)
When Iulia sat for a portrait drawing ('Espoir Sketch') she probably had no idea of the developmental path it would take. A further profile portrait resulted in 'Seditio Sicarii 11', and In the 'East of Eden' series she appears in paintings 8 and 14. In both of these, I attempted awkward poses in Gouache watercolour on A4. The challenge was compounded by a profile view in 8 and a three-quarter view in 14.
The profile view was a good opportunity to demonstrate the simple construction of a low cross, formed using a short stake with a forked top and a half-round split log patibulum. However, it leaves small scope for demonstrating the length of the patibulum, and this is implied by the arm bent over the top. With wrists nailed to the back of the beam and the victim effectively suspended by the elbows, knees bent beyond a right angle, this is the obvious method for accommodating a tall subject on a short cross. Such physical compression allowed me to paint in a reasonably large scale with the figure filling the paper.
Being unable to find any suitable references for the pose, I had to imagine how somebody would look in this position, sideways on. I also wanted to convey the impression of collapsed body weight, hanging unconscious from the awkwardly secured arms and I hoped the long hair would contribute to this effect. The result is bit like a William Blake figure, with long legs and a short torso, but I was being ambitious. One day somebody may post a suitable photo, which I can compare for accuracy.
When I acquired a computer, I used Iulia's face in an early CG blending experiment in Windows Paint with Puvis de Chavannes' Hope ('Espoir apres Puvis de Chavannes 1'). This proved the potential of the computer graphic medium but the results were not very dramatic. How far, I wondered, could I push the bounds of credibility in Windows Paint? The answers were 'CG experiments 3 & 4'. Now I was ready to remake - remodel Iulia as I had never seen her before!
I used a more exhausted expression in 'Via Appia 12', although I still intend to use the terrified versions in future manips. Comparison of 'Via Appia 12k sepia' and its colour equivalent reveals how I was striving to get realistic arm and shoulder tension effects late in the development of the picture. All the way from the fingers to the rib cage I have made substantial changes. With such a record of development, Iulia has been remade - remodelled at every stage, and as she has not yet been in Photoshop, I believe we have not seen the last of her.
Attachments
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bbrr1 Espoir sketch.jpg -
bbrr2 (d archive) Seditio Sicarii 11.jpg -
bbrr3 (b archive) East of Eden 8.jpg -
bbrr4 (b archive) East of Eden 14.jpg -
bbrr5 Espoir apres Puvis de Chavannes 1.jpg -
bbrr6 CG Experiment 3.jpg -
bbrr7 CG experiment 4.jpg -
bbrr8 Via Appia 12k sepia -7-15.jpg -
bbrr9 Via Appia 12k.jpg -
bbrr10 Via Appia 12c.jpg
Depicting The Dead 1
Remarkably there are a dozen or so pictures among the 500-odd images currently in my Deviantart gallery, which do not depict executions. Additionally there are currently eight paintings in the 'Pyracie' series which illustrate non-crux executions. Occasionally it make a refreshing change - either portraying the living or despatching a model by means other than the cross. But I always return to crucifixion. It seems to me that none of man's ingenious alternatives for disposing of his and her own kind quite equals this fascinating, protracted agony of capital punishment.
Few of my pictures depict the dead in the aftermath of their ordeal. I suspect that much of my artistic motivation has been about depicting the drama of physical sensation in a living victim enduring the agony of pure punishment in the face of certain death. Historically the spectacle of the exposed corpse hanging in full public view was intended to inspire revulsion and fear. However, this reaction has been usurped by the Christian symbol of redemption, in which the crucified corpse is symbolic not of death but a triumph over death.
Somehow there is an artistic expectation here for the crucified corpse to express serenity, even beauty in death. Two of my 'Seditio Sicarii' images address this particular conflict between beauty and decay, as do a few of my earlier manipulations. The challenge is to make the picture expressive when the body is completely relaxed, arms at full stretch and the facial expression literally deadpan. The last trickles of perspiration through the sweat stains help to play a supporting role. '10 000 Page Views' is also symbolic of making a grateful bow to my supportive fans on Deviantart.
Remarkably there are a dozen or so pictures among the 500-odd images currently in my Deviantart gallery, which do not depict executions. Additionally there are currently eight paintings in the 'Pyracie' series which illustrate non-crux executions. Occasionally it make a refreshing change - either portraying the living or despatching a model by means other than the cross. But I always return to crucifixion. It seems to me that none of man's ingenious alternatives for disposing of his and her own kind quite equals this fascinating, protracted agony of capital punishment.
Few of my pictures depict the dead in the aftermath of their ordeal. I suspect that much of my artistic motivation has been about depicting the drama of physical sensation in a living victim enduring the agony of pure punishment in the face of certain death. Historically the spectacle of the exposed corpse hanging in full public view was intended to inspire revulsion and fear. However, this reaction has been usurped by the Christian symbol of redemption, in which the crucified corpse is symbolic not of death but a triumph over death.
Somehow there is an artistic expectation here for the crucified corpse to express serenity, even beauty in death. Two of my 'Seditio Sicarii' images address this particular conflict between beauty and decay, as do a few of my earlier manipulations. The challenge is to make the picture expressive when the body is completely relaxed, arms at full stretch and the facial expression literally deadpan. The last trickles of perspiration through the sweat stains help to play a supporting role. '10 000 Page Views' is also symbolic of making a grateful bow to my supportive fans on Deviantart.
Attachments
Depicting The Dead 2
Cicero commented to the effect that anyone condemned to the cross had every reason to embrace death even before the ordeal of suspension had begun. Perhaps ultimately each victim dies willingly, even gratefully, at the culmination of a personal conflict between physical and mental states - the survival instinct versus the suicidal mindset.
Curiously it has a unifying effect. The state demands death because of a capital conviction. The executioners want the victim to die because, regardless of the length of suffering expected, this is an execution, and eventually they'll want to demonstrate the ultimate end of their skill and go home. The spectators have come to see a ritual performance, but whether or not they're in favour of capital punishment, they want to see a person die because the death-defying spectacle of torture begins to get embarrassing after a few hours. The sympathetic friends and family want death because they cannot bear to contemplate the suffering of their beloved, struggling in a hellish limbo of simultaneous living and dying. And however much the victim's survival instinct fights for breath and writhes in physical protest, driven mad by pain, she knows it's a one way ticket and is impatient to reach her destination. Death becomes her ambition.
Obviously the above is equally applicable to the male victim, although he has not appeared in my work to date. In the end, everybody wants the same thing - death for the victim. The desired result appears in 'Via Appia 1a', my first full size crux manipulation. Dramatic elements are provided here by the viewpoint, perspective, clouds and diagonal emphases. As a first effort I was rather impressed by what I had achieved in Windows Paint. 'Via Appia 3b', another early success, represents my only manip so far depicting the spectators, whereby I discovered the challenges presented by consistent scale and lighting inherent in multi-figure compositions. For lighting corrections, the main figure here was heavily overworked manually in Paint, as was the figure in 'Via Appia 2a'.
Cicero commented to the effect that anyone condemned to the cross had every reason to embrace death even before the ordeal of suspension had begun. Perhaps ultimately each victim dies willingly, even gratefully, at the culmination of a personal conflict between physical and mental states - the survival instinct versus the suicidal mindset.
Curiously it has a unifying effect. The state demands death because of a capital conviction. The executioners want the victim to die because, regardless of the length of suffering expected, this is an execution, and eventually they'll want to demonstrate the ultimate end of their skill and go home. The spectators have come to see a ritual performance, but whether or not they're in favour of capital punishment, they want to see a person die because the death-defying spectacle of torture begins to get embarrassing after a few hours. The sympathetic friends and family want death because they cannot bear to contemplate the suffering of their beloved, struggling in a hellish limbo of simultaneous living and dying. And however much the victim's survival instinct fights for breath and writhes in physical protest, driven mad by pain, she knows it's a one way ticket and is impatient to reach her destination. Death becomes her ambition.
Obviously the above is equally applicable to the male victim, although he has not appeared in my work to date. In the end, everybody wants the same thing - death for the victim. The desired result appears in 'Via Appia 1a', my first full size crux manipulation. Dramatic elements are provided here by the viewpoint, perspective, clouds and diagonal emphases. As a first effort I was rather impressed by what I had achieved in Windows Paint. 'Via Appia 3b', another early success, represents my only manip so far depicting the spectators, whereby I discovered the challenges presented by consistent scale and lighting inherent in multi-figure compositions. For lighting corrections, the main figure here was heavily overworked manually in Paint, as was the figure in 'Via Appia 2a'.
Attachments
We are equally impressed by what you achieved in Windows Paint!
Tree
Tree
Thank you. The low viewpoint reveals the deceased's face to good advantage.
"struggling in a hellish limbo of simultaneous living and dying"
this line captures my predicament on the cross so aptly!
and this pic captures that moment of surrender when my head droops forward and I look down my sweating, weakened torso, my knees drawn up uselessly, my legs no longer capable of one last push,my blood trickling down my arms and ribs and oozing out between my toes ... I am no longer able to struggle ... I pass beyond that "hellish limbo of simultaneously living and dying."
this line captures my predicament on the cross so aptly!
and this pic captures that moment of surrender when my head droops forward and I look down my sweating, weakened torso, my knees drawn up uselessly, my legs no longer capable of one last push,my blood trickling down my arms and ribs and oozing out between my toes ... I am no longer able to struggle ... I pass beyond that "hellish limbo of simultaneously living and dying."
Thanks. It brings out the poet in me...
Depicting The Dead 3
VAC Gatrell notes that two hundred years ago, not only artists but the viewing public and society in general became, "more pathos-laden, more preoccupied with death's beauty" -
"In the gothic novel or in the art of Henri Fuseli and William Etty death and macabre desire were erotically bonded. The beautiful and desired corpse came to be encased in a morbidity which by the nineteenth century was in full flower. 'The death of a beautiful woman is unquestionably the most poetic subject in the world' as Edgar Allan Poe wrote in 1846." (VAC Gatrell 'The Hanging Tree' 1996.)
Poe, the acknowledged master of gothic horror, has perfectly anticipated my exploration of the tension between beauty and decay. Taken further, the artist's motivation in the portrayal of death goes beyond mere empathy and has to do with a fascination with a state and condition the living have yet to experience. Elisabeth Bronfen considers this in detail when she speculates about artists' strange compulsion to depict the death of beautiful women, and our pleasure in such images:
"How can we delight at, be fascinated, morally educated, emotionally elevated and psychologically reassured in our sense of self by virtue of the depiction of a horrible event in the life of another, which we would not have inflicted on ourselves? These depictions delight because we are confronted with death, yet it is the death of the other. We experience death by proxy. In the aesthetic enactment, we have a situation impossible in life, namely that we die with another and return to the living. Even as we are forced to acknowledge the ubiquitous presence of death in life, our belief in our own immortality is confirmed. There is death but it is not my own.
"The artistic representation of death expresses a displaced anxiety about death and a desire for death as well. It expresses something that is so dangerous to the health of the psyche that it must be repressed and yet so strong in its desire for articulation that it can't be. In a gesture of compromise, the artist deals with the danger by representing death in the body of another person and at another site." (Elisabeth Bronfen 'Over Her Dead Body: 'Death, Femininity and the Aesthetic' 1992.)
'Via Appia 4b' betrays my Pre-Raphaelite inclinations in the voluptuous, cascading locks of red hair. John Everett Millais' 'Ophelia' is arguably the best known Pre-Raphaelite painting of a beautiful dying woman, which illustrates Gatrell's thesis perfectly. The model, Lizzie Siddal (herself a somewhat overlooked Victorian artist and poet) posed immersed in a bath of cold water, which ironically nearly brought about her own death from pneumonia. 'Via Appia 12pp' is a variation in which the exhausted central figure is gratefully succumbing to death's release.
VAC Gatrell notes that two hundred years ago, not only artists but the viewing public and society in general became, "more pathos-laden, more preoccupied with death's beauty" -
"In the gothic novel or in the art of Henri Fuseli and William Etty death and macabre desire were erotically bonded. The beautiful and desired corpse came to be encased in a morbidity which by the nineteenth century was in full flower. 'The death of a beautiful woman is unquestionably the most poetic subject in the world' as Edgar Allan Poe wrote in 1846." (VAC Gatrell 'The Hanging Tree' 1996.)
Poe, the acknowledged master of gothic horror, has perfectly anticipated my exploration of the tension between beauty and decay. Taken further, the artist's motivation in the portrayal of death goes beyond mere empathy and has to do with a fascination with a state and condition the living have yet to experience. Elisabeth Bronfen considers this in detail when she speculates about artists' strange compulsion to depict the death of beautiful women, and our pleasure in such images:
"How can we delight at, be fascinated, morally educated, emotionally elevated and psychologically reassured in our sense of self by virtue of the depiction of a horrible event in the life of another, which we would not have inflicted on ourselves? These depictions delight because we are confronted with death, yet it is the death of the other. We experience death by proxy. In the aesthetic enactment, we have a situation impossible in life, namely that we die with another and return to the living. Even as we are forced to acknowledge the ubiquitous presence of death in life, our belief in our own immortality is confirmed. There is death but it is not my own.
"The artistic representation of death expresses a displaced anxiety about death and a desire for death as well. It expresses something that is so dangerous to the health of the psyche that it must be repressed and yet so strong in its desire for articulation that it can't be. In a gesture of compromise, the artist deals with the danger by representing death in the body of another person and at another site." (Elisabeth Bronfen 'Over Her Dead Body: 'Death, Femininity and the Aesthetic' 1992.)
'Via Appia 4b' betrays my Pre-Raphaelite inclinations in the voluptuous, cascading locks of red hair. John Everett Millais' 'Ophelia' is arguably the best known Pre-Raphaelite painting of a beautiful dying woman, which illustrates Gatrell's thesis perfectly. The model, Lizzie Siddal (herself a somewhat overlooked Victorian artist and poet) posed immersed in a bath of cold water, which ironically nearly brought about her own death from pneumonia. 'Via Appia 12pp' is a variation in which the exhausted central figure is gratefully succumbing to death's release.
Attachments
All great but 1 & 2 are superb!!!
Thanks. It's an early manipulation all in Windows Paint, which was very time consuming, but I'm still happy with the result.
And well you should!!!