The Carnival
The Carnival, 2024
160cm x 160cm
Oil on canvas
160cm x 160cm
Oil on canvas
‘Donna Haraway uses the term tentacular thinking as a counter-term and critique of a visually dominated, anthropomorphic form of thinking. The world, on the other hand, is to be perceived by touching, feeling and trying things out.’
The Carnival represents a scene of chaos and movement, heavily inspired by Peter Paul Rubens, ‘The Tiger Hunt’. A mass of information can be seen swarming around each individual within the piece with not much breathing room to understanding what is going on with the contrasting movements of in action, and stillness. I created a composition to lead the viewers eye a central figure, the man on the back, with highlights, arm positioning, and the following of the eyes, when in reality the one who embodies the term ‘Tentacular Thinking’ is the one wedged between where a fist fight is breaking out. I wanted to physicalise a dissociative state of not viewing, but feeling and being present around the chaos. If an individual visually focuses on one element of the painting, they will miss many more around it.