Dead Men
2011
Materials: Ink
This body of work was produced within a short period of time, about 5 hours, and was influenced by Gericault’s The Raft of the Medusa.
The Raft of the Medusa is an oil painting by the French Romantic painter Gericault (1791–1824).
It depicts a moment from the aftermath of the wreck of the French naval warship Meduse, in 1816. About 132 people died and the 15 who survived experienced starvation, dehydration, cannibalism and madness. This event became known about internationally, with the French captain being blamed for the tragedy. Géricault consciously selected a well-known incident that would generate great public interest and help launch his career.
The deathly figures in this series Dead Men were achieved by a composite arrangement of numerous ink studies of the same man. It was produced during a life drawing class.
This series was pivotal to my future drawing method. I began to paint solely in ink from then on.