Art is the Solution

Le Sacrifice d'Iphigénie Source: Christies Yesterday, I discussed Félix Vallotton’s—a Modernist artist—approach to the legend of Perseus and Andromeda. While Vallotton’s version of this subject is well known, he was far from the only Modernist artist to tackle mythological subjects. Belgian Surrealist Paul Delvaux was clearly fascinated by mythological and classical scenes, which figure heavily in his work. Delvaux is well known for his paintings of nude women who wander through bizarre landscapes of classical architecture mixed with elements of twentieth century industrial culture. Delvaux was particularly obsessed with trains, which he regarded as quasi-magical devices and held special symbolic meaning to him. Trains appear in almost all of his paintings, speeding away into the night. Le Sacrifice d'Iphigénie is representative of these themes within his work. The piece references the story of Iphigenia from Greek mythology. According to legend, the Greek army killed on...

Loneliness Source: Daily Art Magazine In this time of social distancing, I thought it would be interesting to examine a painting that deals with isolation. I did some research and decided to bring you this painting, entitled Loneliness , by Belgian painted Paul Delvaux. The painting depicts a young woman walking along an empty street at night. Only her back is visible, signaling her separation from the viewer and the disconnect between her and the outside world. To the left, a train rolls past, a symbol of the transience and impermanence of life. Delvaux implies a visual comparison between the girl and the train, both follow a solitary path, traveling alone into the night. There is something very bleak and sad about this image. To my eyes, this interpretation of loneliness is somewhat unique to the modern age. Loneliness dates to 1956. In the years after the World Wars (particularly WWI), men and women began to become disillusioned with life, mainly as a result of the mind-numbi...