Graces 3
$150
Painting: oil on canvas, 24 by 30 inches
Also available as limited edition fine art prints:
- 16" x 20" giclée print (limited edition run of 200)
- Letter of authenticity provided
- Archival-quality pigment ink on 308 GSM cotton photo rag paper
- Rated at 200 years fade resistance
This painting is an abstract take on a classical motif and an homage to all the great artists who drew inspiration from it. The Three Graces are daughters of Zeus and Eurynome, and were thought of by the Greeks to represent elegance, brightness, splendor, youth, beauty and good cheer. Like in Botticelli's "Primavera", here they are depicted with their hands joined in a gentle dance.
My palette owes much to the same source. Somewhat subdued and dominated by greens, pastel blues and purples, it nevertheless doesn't shy away from assertive red accents.
When working on the overall design, I thought of all the gorgeous medieval and early modern stained glass windows that abound in cathedrals across Europe. Pieces of stained glass are carefully shaped and placed into a lattice which, once soldered, will hold them together. When viewed, the result is flat regions of vibrant colour separated by starkly contrasting lines; if the glass pieces are small like they tend to be in gothic rose windows, we get a breathtaking mosaic. Close your eyes. Now open them. What if I told you this festival of hue and motion is an abstract work by Fahrelnissa Zeid?
In my piece, likewise, you see regions of colour held together by a lattice, but one thing they're not is flat. The paint is applied thickly and generously with a palette knife. Botticelli's Graces are delicate and exalted, stained glass windows are your portal to the transcendent, but I decidedly bring my Graces down to Earth. My Graces are pastose, rich, juicy, they have heft. That's what brightness, splendor, youth, beauty and good cheer actually look like.
