The Garden

Artist Statement:

This piece came about as a result of absorbing a range of delightful medieval absurdities- e.g. the strange Madonna’s nursing what appear to be creepy old men instead of babies, and all the wonderful little demons and depictions of Lucifer with evil crotch faces in illuminated manuscript margins. I also recently read Dante’s inferno. These were the kind of inspirations knocking around in my mind when I was asked to be a part of the "Duality" exhibition at Haven Gallery- an exhibition where each artist does two paintings of opposing forces. So of course I chose a heaven and hell theme for my piece- the ladies I love to paint standing in for god and the devil and the miniature people; the blessed or tormented souls. I also hand embellished the frame including 4 miniature reliefs representing angels, demons above and below. The result? The monstrosity you see before you.

My intention was to make something delightfully absurd, though I realize with the details being more rendered than the medieval illustrations I referenced and the more human looking Lucifer it treads a very fine line between delightful and disturbing.