The Devil Takes a Witch Ethan Black 2010 ©
I created this illustration for an art history report that
required us to write about two pieces of art that influence us creatively. I
chose the film Haxan and the sculpture The rape of Persephone. The marriage of
the two resulted in this illustration. This project is one I am very proud of,
I enjoyed doing it and it is the type of illustration I would like to do more
of.
Häxan: Witchcraft Through the Ages (1922) is directed by Benjamin Christensen, the film shows witches in the Middle Ages and is very creepy. The imagery is strange and dream like with nightmareish and oddly erotic images. My imagination is awakened by this film easily.
Rape of Persephone, by Gian Lorenzo Bernini, 1622-1625 is an
amazing sculpture that depicts Hades taking Persephone in a pose that I used to
inspire my work for this illustration. In doing so I was trying to draw
attention to how our myths evolve, merge ad change and how Christianity’s Satan
is connected to the older religions deity’s and myths.
