I painted this piece in May 2024. It was inspired by a girl I met at summer camp a couple years back, named Mathilda. She was always desperately grasping for attention from the wrong people. Eventually, we had to crucify her outside the residence hall. She could've had a bright future, but she just had to go and mess it up like that. Sad.
The image depicts her suspended nude body displayed in a geometric case. Wrapped around her legs is a serpentine entity clutching a malus domestica in his bazoo. Behind the display case, the castle walls stretch up towards the pungently blue sky, contrasting the dull buildings surrounding her. The image is wrapped in a blood-red border, matching details in the clouds and the serpent's offering.
The religious connotations are potent in this piece. We did crucify her after all. I included the image of the devilish little apple eater as a symbol of sin and temptation. A crucifixion of Eve. Mathilda just couldn't control herself, that's why we hung her out to dry.
Connotations spring up profusely in the structure of the buildings. It's evidently a sizable structure, perhaps a castle or a prison. With the towering display case in the center and surrounding windows, it is reminiscent of a panopticon. One of the windows, furthest to the left, is lit. Maybe someone is home.
The title of the piece tells us where we are, or so it seems. The title is not who is depicted, making the subject of the painting about the location. It's really not about her. She always thinks it is though. It's funny to watch; how she believes what people say to her. Everyone else knows, but we keep quiet. They crucify stupid girls in Artist's Village all the time! I've heard they typically do it over three-day weekends, with a side of coleslaw and plain burnt chicken. They just eat it with their hands while they nail the bitch up. Regrettably, I only got to do it twice.
It sounds like maybe she just needed some real friends. I pray her crucifixtion saved her from her flesh and that she comes back stronger, but not strong enough to get her revenge.
ReplyDeleteCool painting! Xo
This is a really interesting piece and I love the writing explaining the story behind the work! It makes me want to understand both Mathilda and the people who crucified her more.
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