"Octopus X (after Sargent)" by Troy's Work Table. Carport chalking for Friday 09 October 2015.
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"Octopus X" is modeled after Madame X, a portrait of Madame Pierre Gautreau by John Singer Sargent.
Madame Gautreau was apparently the late nineteenth century equivalent of Paris Hilton or Kim Kardashian and Sargent's painting of her was considered somewhat scandalous. But his painting is so rich and alive and it has been haunting me.
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When I first imagined Madame X as a human avatar of the Mother Octopus, I kept thinking that perhaps some Disney animator had this painting in mind when drawing Ursula for The Little Mermaid.
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Anyway, I liked the idea of the dress form remaining intact as the ink cloud column that Mother Octopus produces and rises above. And there you have her: Octopus X.
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(Yesterday was World Octopus Day!)
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You can view more pictures of "Octopus X" HERE.
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