This references Rene Magritte’s The Lovers II in which two people kiss through a shroud that wraps around each of their faces. I have always been particularly fascinated by Magritte's work, he is one of my favorite artists, especially the way his work engages with That Which is Hidden. I am fascinated by the implications of The Hidden, especially how hiding a face, even just an expression, allows each viewer to interpret an image in a different way and project their own story onto it.
The Lovers II, Rene Magritte
My piece features Clytemnestra killing Agamemnon, their faces obscured by a veil and bandages respectively. In my piece, the two people featured are on seperate canvases, and they do not share a veil. They are divided, and do not reach for each other in love but in violence.
Fun Facts:
Queen Clytemnestra killed her husband Agamemnon (in the bath, with an axe, or maybe a sword) to avenge their daughter Iphigenia, who he killed as a sacrifice before the Trojan War. Clytemnestra's veil is red for a number of reasons, one being that it is a reference to the fact that red, or sometimes purple, fabrics were involved in the death of Agamemnon. The snake tattoo on Clytemnestra’s arm is a reference to The Furies, who were sometimes said to have snakes in their hair. She is associated with them in her vengeance.
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