|
Thank you Alex, Richard, Enzie , Laurel and Julie !
Well, I think I have to explain a bit...
The title comes from Homer. When I was a child I read several times The Odyssey, and I remember how much I loved that every day was begining by " When the child of the morning, rosy-fingered Dawn appeared... " I think it was repeated 162 times, and like all children I liked repetitions ( it's very reassuring, I think...) To make it shorter, I kept only " When rosy-fingered dawn appeared..." which is long enough for a title although my favourite was ( sorry I didn't find a translation so it's my words ) " When rosy-fingered dawn went out of her cradle of mist...)
Well, this is for the title. This painting is once again one where differents parts of me join.
It was quite a long process, and it appeared to me evident only at the end.
So, during my chilhood, ( beside beeing influenced by italian renaissance ) I was influenced by greek mythology ( which is certainely reponsible for my taste for allegories ) and I quite early discovered also modern greek culture. I never learned ancient greek, although I speak quite well modern greek. This is certainly the reason of the feeling of time confusion that Alex mentions.
I began this piece at the begining of the summer, I didn't really knew what direction it would take, but I had already the idea of the wall, and 3 figures. I organized severall photo sessions, and these 3 figures come from 2 different sessions, but same place, same hour ( so almost same light ). The child who raises her arm and the one on our right is the same child. I also used a combination of 3 photos for the 2 on the left.
Before I left for holidays, I had an harmonious composition of 3 figures on a wall. That was not enough. I knew I wanted something contemporary, and I was thinking to some torn-off posters... I was looking in the streets if I could find some nice exemples, but couldn't find some neither in Montreal, nor in France. Then I had an opportunity to spend 2 weeks in Greece ( first time since 10 years !) and in Athens ( which is quite a dirty city) I found lot of beautiful exemples so the idea of greek lettering was totally obvious.
The landscape of the background is from the village I know since my childhood. I couldn't make some plain-air painting this year because I tried to come back with not drown daughters, but I painted this landscape many times before ( since I was 8 years old, I think !)
So all these elements finished to find their place in this sort of puzzle. It's a combination of planning, chance,intuitions and recollections.
|