Title:Head of Bacchus
Size: 30.5 cm by 40.5 cm
Medium: Colored pencils and acrylic on illustration board
Date: November 2017
This illustration was inspired by Marinari's Salome with the Head of the Baptist and Caravaggio's Bacchus. A continuation of Bacchus this piece focuses on the negative aspects of overconsumption and indulgence as it relates to identity. The work specifically focuses on the ignorance and loss of self that come with the culture of overconsumption.
Inspiration
keeping with the theme of overconsumption this illustration deals with the consequences. In this illustration It is my goal to depict the chaos of hedonism as it relates to the individual. Having completed the sketch for my positive illustration before embarking on the negative illustration I already had an idea of what I wanted to portray.
Onorio Marinari
Onorio Marinari was a 17th century Baroque painter and print maker. Marinari's paintings depict a great narrative expression and complex dynamic compositions.
Marinari, Onorio. Salome with the Head of the Baptist. 1680, Szépmûvészeti Múzeum, Budapesta.
When conducting research I found very little about both the artist and the painting. Despite this, I decide to continue with using the work as inspiration due to the beautiful coloration and values. Due to the very limited knowledge, I have on this piece and its creator, as well as this scene, being widely illustrated I wanted to make sure my work had a very clear resemblance.
Considering the very little knowledge I was able to gain from my research on Marninari I decided to create a piece continuing the story in the first illustration. In this illustration I use only certain parts Marniari's work. In this piece I used Marniari's work for purely aesthetics and not meaning.
Considering the very little knowledge I was able to gain from my research on Marninari I decided to create a piece continuing the story in the first illustration. In this illustration I use only certain parts Marniari's work. In this piece I used Marniari's work for purely aesthetics and not meaning.
Planning
Due to the fact that I wanted to continue Bacchus' story for this piece I also had to use photographs as reference.
I chose this photo as a reference for my expression in my illustration for various reasons. While at first the smile may seem inappropriate for the piece I did want to represent the loss of ones morals and values through overconsumption. I believe in using this photograph I was able to capture a sense of hedonistic ignorance that comes with overconsumption.
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Sketch
In this sketch, I chose to use the only one part of the artist's work. In order for the work to resemble the inspiration more, I chose to duplicate the part I took and create a sort of collage. In the original John, the Baptist's head is being swaddled in luxurious fabrics after suffering the death of a martyr. In My piece, I am blissfully unaware of my demise as blood and wine intermingle in a fountain falling from plater to plater. This depiction is meant to symbolize the distraction overconsumption and hedonism can bring out in one. It was my hope to create a collage-like effect to further the concept of excess in the work. I also plan to implement the same Baroque style when adding color in order to not only tie the illustrations together but also bring out a further sense of excess.
Exploration of Sketch
Although I had already created a sketch I was more than content with I decided to experiment with the way I would portray the hands and tray. In the end I ended up not finishing the hand sketches because I felt you could no longer see the influence from the work I was inspired by. I also chose not to continue because I couldn't see the piece working in these perspectives.
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Process
After finalizing the sketch and going through critique there was really no aspects that needed fixing before starting. Instead of tracing the work in order to transfer it I did redraw it directly on the illustration board. This provided time for me to familiarize myself with the cloth in the piece something I was not confident I could execute well.
Coloring
The coloring for this illustration began with the face of the main subject then the hands. I colored in skin tone first because that is the first thing I noticed in Marinari's work. In contrast to the previous illustration and Caravaggio's style, Marinari's skin appears to be glowing porcelain, not a drunken glow. I attempted to achieve this glowing parceling look by layering colors on top of each other and blending as best I could to create various values and form. It was important for me to make the arms look very similar to Marinari's but I did not want my face in Marinari's style. In order to tie both pieces together, I wanted to depict my face as it would if Caravaggio painted it, therefore, I was harsher with the colors and values.
After the skin was done I moved on to the cloth. The cloth for me was the hardest part of the piece. The While I tried referencing Marinari's work I often found myself lost in the folds. Due to this, I believe it might not give off the right texture and be quite 2 dimensional. In order to color the cloth, I employed the same technique as of layering. This is where I believe I implemented the wrong technique and created a weird texture.
The last thing I colored before was the trays and blood. the trays were colored in layers. Although not exactly Marninari's trays I believe the arms were enough of a resemblance. There was also a limited effort on the trays because I knew more than half of them would be covered once I placed the blood/wine in the piece. the blood wine was relatively easy to produce but does not look like what I would have wanted. Due to waxy finish of the color pencils, I was unable to really put down all the layers I wanted. This affected not only the look of the blood but the feel of the whole piece.
I painted the background a very dark black to raw umber transition before I added on the blood/wine. This I thought would be easier than painting around the drops and splashes but in the ended it limited my ability to work on it. The paint made it harder for the true color of the colored pencil to show up. Although I used the same deep burgundy reds on the blood/wine in the tray and over the background they don't appear to be the same thing. In the end, I couldn't fix either due to the waxy coating of the colored pencils.
Experimentation
In this piece, I experimented with using different colors for the skin. In order to achieve the porcelain, look base must be a very dull pale but the base I was used to using was far too bright and yellow. In order to achieve, a pale look I incorporated a cool grey to the base used a minimal amount of the cream color and blended heavily with white. In the end, I believe this created an adequate base.
I also experiment with the color for shadows in this piece. Despite the skin looking like a cool pale porcelain, there are pink tones I couldn't understand how to incorporate. If I attempted to incorporate them then the whole piece would look warm and nothing like Marinari's. In the end, I ended up not being able to find the right ratio of warm to cool tones and the arms look completely different than Marinari's.
I also experiment with the color for shadows in this piece. Despite the skin looking like a cool pale porcelain, there are pink tones I couldn't understand how to incorporate. If I attempted to incorporate them then the whole piece would look warm and nothing like Marinari's. In the end, I ended up not being able to find the right ratio of warm to cool tones and the arms look completely different than Marinari's.
Reflection
I wouldn't say I am satisfied or disappointed but the outcome of the piece. I believe it could have been a stronger piece if I had more information on the artist. Despite the lack of information I had on him I believe my attempt at recreating a piece of his work wasn't good enough to be recognizable. My attempts at creating a similar look to his are flat and can't even compare. Other than that I believe I did a great job of using up space in the piece and using composition to move the viewer's eyes. In conclusion despite my shortcomings as a whole piece the work it just satisfactory.
ACT Responses
1) Clearly explain how you are able to identify the cause-effect relationships between your inspiration and its effect upon your work?
The cause of my inspiration was my passion for Baroque art and dramatic well lit scenes.
2) What is the overall approach(point of view) the author (from your research) has regarding the topic of your inspiration?
There were little to no authors who wrote on the Marinari's life. The research I did on the story depicted in his work was mostly biased due to it being a Biblical scene.
3) What kind of generalizations and conclusions have you discovered about people, ideas, cultures, etc. while you researched your inspiration?
From my research I can generalize that throughout time artist have depicted the same things over and over but what separated them is the artist's unique perspective on the subject.
4) What was the central idea or theme around your inspirational research?
The Central Idea for my research was the glamorization of overindulgence and perceptions.
5) What kind of inferences (conclusions reached on the basis of evidence and reasoning) did you make while reading your research?
While conducting research I came to the conclusion that throughout time aspects of a artists life may be essential to understanding certain choices in their work.
The cause of my inspiration was my passion for Baroque art and dramatic well lit scenes.
2) What is the overall approach(point of view) the author (from your research) has regarding the topic of your inspiration?
There were little to no authors who wrote on the Marinari's life. The research I did on the story depicted in his work was mostly biased due to it being a Biblical scene.
3) What kind of generalizations and conclusions have you discovered about people, ideas, cultures, etc. while you researched your inspiration?
From my research I can generalize that throughout time artist have depicted the same things over and over but what separated them is the artist's unique perspective on the subject.
4) What was the central idea or theme around your inspirational research?
The Central Idea for my research was the glamorization of overindulgence and perceptions.
5) What kind of inferences (conclusions reached on the basis of evidence and reasoning) did you make while reading your research?
While conducting research I came to the conclusion that throughout time aspects of a artists life may be essential to understanding certain choices in their work.
Bibliography
Marinari, Onorio. Salome with the Head of the Baptist. 1680, Szépmûvészeti Múzeum, Budapesta.
“MARINARI, Onorio.” Salome with the Head of the Baptist by MARINARI, Onorio, www.wga.hu/html_m/m/marinari/salome.html.
“MARINARI, Onorio.” Salome with the Head of the Baptist by MARINARI, Onorio, www.wga.hu/html_m/m/marinari/salome.html.