I call this particular painting “Terpsichore”, who is the Muse of lyric poetry and dancing. I chose this deity because I feel the main form possesses the lines of a dancer in flow. Incidentally, this goddess is also regarded as the mother of the Sirens who, according to Homer’s Odyssey, would seduce sailors with their songs. The pronunciation of her name isn’t that obvious, sorry, it’s tuhp·si·kuh·ree.
As with the first painting, and all other paintings in this series, I created the underlying form with many, many THOUSANDS of white ink dots (using a Rotring technical drawing pen) on heavy-duty Fabiano Black art paper. At this stage in the process, the painting looks like a stark white statue set in a blacked-out room.
In fact all the basic forms in this series, before colouring, are what I call “bodyscapes” that to me resemble parts of Ancient Greek and Roman statues.
I then applied splashes of scarlet over the white form, which I do for three reasons. One is that it’s just what I’d already created in my imagination — and because I find it captivating I hope it will also captivate others. Two, the “camouflage” effect of the splashes is intended to disguise the underlying figure, providing some mystery, and hopefully inducing the viewer into a deeper dialogue with the painting. And finally, it enabled me to add colour (beyond black and white) to the pieces. I chose red because, after much experimentation, I felt it created the most intense emotional impact. I hope it has similar effects on you!
Prints of this artwork, in various sizes, are now available in my online shop. ♥️
