I wonder if painters explain their works under normal circumstances, or let the viewers, big time critics to figure out what the artworks really mean, the inspiration that was behind the drawings. Like Michelangelo’s “The Creation of Adam”. Did he explain to the then media that the blob behind the painting of God is indeed a brain? Or someone simply figured it out? It would be so flattering if someone in the future ‘figures out’ my works. For now, back to reality, some of you may wonder how I compose the drawing “Bleeding Heart and the Thread of Fate”. If you have not seen the drawing, I hope you have a look at it before reading further.
Center to this drawing – both theme-wise and location-wise – is what you see above: a bleeding heart and a 8-shaped thread cut opened in two places. I deliberately leave the heart hollow, and broken. Like I wrote in the previous entry, the Chinese title is 《心中滴血紅線斷》. That is a big drop of dripping blood you are seeing. The thread, again, is the ‘red thread’. In Chinese, it is the thread that binds the married couple, a thread of fate that brings the couples together in the first place.
The main subject of this drawing is a girl, with a broken heart (please refer to original drawing). You can see a teardrop from her eye, her shoulders, and her upper body. There are two hands by her side (check out the palm lines). Some form of support, some form of care from her friends and family. There are two more hands side by side with opened palms right underneath the bleeding heart. Again, it is a form of support. What an abstract pair of hands you may ask. If you look closer, from the shoulders of the girl, tracing along her sides with patterns marked by the fingers, all the way to the finger patterns and the gap between the two palms at the bottom – this forms a butterfly. I wish to convey a sense of femininity to this drawing. Also to bring forth the concept of something so beautiful, yet temporal, time bound (butterflies don’t live long).
Previously, I mentioned that there are four faces revealed by rotation. To help you to visualize, I have extracted the bits for each face.
Face #1 should be obvious. That is our main subject. Face #2 requires a bit of imagination. Can you see the two lines of tear from the girl’s eye?
Face #3 and #4 look like distorted figures, which I have intended to in order to signify the pain of a broken heart. There is a face, shoulders, one eye (while another one hidden in the shadow), a nose, and an opened mouth with teeth.
OK. That is all I have. I hope you find this write-up interesting. Thanks for reading!
Related Entry: The Original Drawing
2 replies on “Composition of Bleeding Heart And The Thread Of Fate”
You can publish a book… You can publish a photo album… Now you can have your paints exhibition. Who knows may be 10 years from now the paintings will be Sotheby auction items…
My friend, can I have one of your autographied paintings now?
AY – You know, you must be my #1 most encouraging buddy I have! Drawing is a new experience. I guess be it as photography, writing, drawing, or even music creation – these are just forms. The idea behind is like stem cells, I think. Applicable from one form to another. It is the technique of articulating that concept, that idea that is often the challenge that takes time to nurture.
Sure! I can frame one and send one to you! But let me get to a certain standard first OK? Marker pens on A3 papers doesn’t seem to be that professional. I need to find the right media. Ugh. Any thought on this? I am thinking maybe I need something bigger, different kind of pen and paper …