Pale flesh and red stains / Study and interpretation of ‘Flagellation of Our Lord Jesus Christ’ by William-Adolphe Bouguereau.

 

This is the first artwork created in the series and the inspiration for the following works. This artwork simplifies Bouguereau’s  masterpiece to what the artists feels are the bare essentials. The elegant body of Christ being lashed in the dramatic scene is the essence and focal point of the composition, thus, is given full attention. 

 

The passers-by, and up to an extent, the executioners of the  lashing, are peripheral to the scope of the artwork. In view of this, the artist manipulated the image so as to strengthen the dramatic effect in which the figure of Christ stands further out from the crowd. Red is also central to the scene as it envelopes the body of Christ evoking sensations of pain and urgency. The vibrant red  colour is the result of various layers meant to stain the canvas in an uncontrolled manner.

In this artwork, red represents pain, blood and flesh. The scene from the Holy Gospel is fused to the artist’s interpretation of the mortal human flesh and pain (caused by disease) represented by red paint and stains. The artwork is important for the artist as it is the first time, he consciously combined process, colour and subject-matter towards creating the body of work exhibited in  ‘Aħmar Ħelu w’Qares’. It was the first painting he created as part of his process of reflection after the life changing events he had experienced. 

 

Artwork comes with a Certificate of Authenticity.