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Description
Oil on canvas.

An old piece I never got around to documenting becuase of crappy digital quality.

This was done as an assignment in painting. We had to make a piece based off of sketches done while visiting the controversial 'Bodies' exhibit at MOSI.

So, I had a collection of anatomical drawings - about 30 and had to sift throught them to make a painting.

An OIL PAINTING!!! AHHHHHH!

Theme...

The divine union between man and woman to create life. Pretty much it. Hopefully the picture is more captivating than my words.

Technical stuff:

The egg and sperm in the center are meant to mimic or resemble a 'SUN' (an archetypical symbol of creation on many levels and in many cultures).

The red thing in the background is actually and oblique cut of a human heart. Ever wonder why we have that silly Hallmark, Valentines Day heart shape that looks nothing like a REAL one? Well, when you cut the heart at an oblique - the only way you can make it somewhat symmetric - it creates this trademark shape. So, this is portrayed as an actual heart, and an iconic one as well. Notice also that the HEART arches over both the cross section of the male and female, representing a tanglible, biological and emotional connection between the two.

The glowing 'orange' things in the middle of the brain that run down the spines of the two saggitally cut figures (forgive the science talk - I'm a scientist) are called the corpus callosum. This is the only connection between the right and left hemispheres of the human brain. Just like conception, birth and emotion, I also tried to show the completion of man and woman on an INTELLECTUAL level by highlighting these areas. I thought it important, but it would probably be lost on people unfamiliar with neuropysiology. But, that's ok. There are different levels to each piece.

The upturned brachial tubes on the bottom are meant to symbolize the 'Tree of Life' as well as family trees in any genus. Also, breathing is integral to life, and so loaded with meaning as a religious and biological motif. Yes, this is meant to have subtle religious or spiritual connotation.

As you can see, I tried to select specific pieces of the anatomy I sketched at the exhibit, to create a fully developed and thematically tight painting that hopefully brings some sort of wonder or inspiration as to the miracle of life to the viewer. That was the idea anyway, to show these connections and on some level let the viewer experience it.

I tried.

The main problem I had going into this piece was to NOT make it loook too much of an Alex Grey carbon copy. So, I just kinda did a clinical representation (not a tripy, or overtly symbolic one - no crosses or ohms or shakras) while relying on color and composition to bring a more organic vision on the piece. I thought I could convey the theme much better by just arranging the forms that actually exist, instead of relying on overt symbols created by culture.

Sorry if this comment is long, but there is one more thing to say. The work is technically very solid and loaded with meaning and thought. I do alot of that - it's just my thing. This was done for an assignment for a painting class and absolutely every student had horrible things to say about it. Keep in mind, that their pieces were either half done or really, really bad. I crited their work as such, which is perhaps the reason for the bashing. Strangely enough though, I felt more fullfillment in their nit-picking the work than I think I could have otherwise. I'm not saying they were jealous, just that their reactions were so over the top and ill-substantiated it made me laugh.

Description
Oil on canvas.

An old piece I never got around to documenting becuase of crappy digital quality.

This was done as an assignment in painting. We had to make a piece based off of sketches done while visiting the controversial 'Bodies' exhibit at MOSI.

So, I had a collection of anatomical drawings - about 30 and had to sift throught them to make a painting.

An OIL PAINTING!!! AHHHHHH!

Theme...

The divine union between man and woman to create life. Pretty much it. Hopefully the picture is more captivating than my words.

Technical stuff:

The egg and sperm in the center are meant to mimic or resemble a 'SUN' (an archetypical symbol of creation on many levels and in many cultures).

The red thing in the background is actually and oblique cut of a human heart. Ever wonder why we have that silly Hallmark, Valentines Day heart shape that looks nothing like a REAL one? Well, when you cut the heart at an oblique - the only way you can make it somewhat symmetric - it creates this trademark shape. So, this is portrayed as an actual heart, and an iconic one as well. Notice also that the HEART arches over both the cross section of the male and female, representing a tanglible, biological and emotional connection between the two.

The glowing 'orange' things in the middle of the brain that run down the spines of the two saggitally cut figures (forgive the science talk - I'm a scientist) are called the corpus callosum. This is the only connection between the right and left hemispheres of the human brain. Just like conception, birth and emotion, I also tried to show the completion of man and woman on an INTELLECTUAL level by highlighting these areas. I thought it important, but it would probably be lost on people unfamiliar with neuropysiology. But, that's ok. There are different levels to each piece.

The upturned brachial tubes on the bottom are meant to symbolize the 'Tree of Life' as well as family trees in any genus. Also, breathing is integral to life, and so loaded with meaning as a religious and biological motif. Yes, this is meant to have subtle religious or spiritual connotation.

As you can see, I tried to select specific pieces of the anatomy I sketched at the exhibit, to create a fully developed and thematically tight painting that hopefully brings some sort of wonder or inspiration as to the miracle of life to the viewer. That was the idea anyway, to show these connections and on some level let the viewer experience it.

I tried.

The main problem I had going into this piece was to NOT make it loook too much of an Alex Grey carbon copy. So, I just kinda did a clinical representation (not a tripy, or overtly symbolic one - no crosses or ohms or shakras) while relying on color and composition to bring a more organic vision on the piece. I thought I could convey the theme much better by just arranging the forms that actually exist, instead of relying on overt symbols created by culture.

Sorry if this comment is long, but there is one more thing to say. The work is technically very solid and loaded with meaning and thought. I do alot of that - it's just my thing. This was done for an assignment for a painting class and absolutely every student had horrible things to say about it. Keep in mind, that their pieces were either half done or really, really bad. I crited their work as such, which is perhaps the reason for the bashing. Strangely enough though, I felt more fullfillment in their nit-picking the work than I think I could have otherwise. I'm not saying they were jealous, just that their reactions were so over the top and ill-substantiated it made me laugh.