The Tree-Man

Hieronymus Bosch-The Tree-Man Circa 1505

Another one of the drawings that can be definitely attributed to have come from the hand of the master, The Tree-Man is also a figure that features prominently in the right panel hellscape of the triptych The Garden of Earthly Delights.

As the date of composition of The Garden of Earthly Delights cannot be determined accurately beyond the range of 1490 to 1510, it is a matter of conjecture as to whether the drawing of The Tree-Man is a preparatory sketch or a later variation on this most memorable, nightmarish character.

Although not situated in hell, the landscape of The Tree-Man is nevertheless rather bleak and blighted. In the centre of the foreground a stunted tree sits near the bank of a river that has inundated a large part of the background land. Various species of birds feature, including a stock, a pair of swimming ducks and an owl.

Dominating the scene is the Tree-Man, a monstrous hybrid of human face, rotting tree stumps, broken eggshell and boats. Inside the hollow cavity of the body a group of people (surely damned) appear to be involved in drinking, gambling and whoring. Also a crescent moon flag juts from this unusual posterior opening. The Tree-Man sports extraordinary headgear on which a large pitcher is balanced. Inside this vessel is a small blurry figure that is pointlessly dangling a fishing line and another man precariously clings onto a ladder while reaching out to a line that is attached to the flag.

It has been suggested that the Tree-Man’s face in both this drawing and in The Garden of Earthly Delights is a possible self-portrait of Bosch. In the triptych the headgear closely resembles an artist’s palette and the sideways, conspiratorial expression of rueful resignation that greet the viewer do point towards the Tree-Man being an elaborate, knowingly ironic signature.

The Erotic Ink of Apollonia Saintclair

 

Apollonia Saintclair-Les Grandes découvertes (The Age of Discovery)

The rather evocatively named Apollonia Saintclair (presumably a pseudonym that conjures up  images, in my mind, at least, of a Bond villainess and a vixen of a heroine in a French libertine novel) provocative and very erotic illustrations have gathered a huge and obsessive following on Instagram and Tumblr for the mysterious, secretive artist.

Saintclair’s veritable pornocupia of fantasies, kinks and fetishes locate sex and desire as the nexus of a wide range of human emotions. Her black and white images are suggestive of pulp, noir and, on occasion, the gleeful decadence of Beardsley and Von Bayros; while shot through with a delightful insolent wit that ranges from the mischievous to the macabre.

In her interviews Saintclair has expressed her admiration for the pioneering photographer and artist Man Ray who was noted for his use of visual puns and rhymes, which quickly became a hallmark of early Surrealism. In drawings such as La Bonne Poire (The Juicy Fruit) and La Trouvaille (There you are), Saintclair expands (in conjuration with their disingenuous titles) the potential of the visual pun that elicits the shock of suppressed recognition from the viewer. The startling La Mort Douce (The Sweet Death) with its inversion of the Biblical tale of St John the Baptist and Salome has, however, far more sinister connotations.

Although obviously well-versed in art history in general and erotic art in particular, and while her work contains echoes of everything from Clovis Trouille’s sultry, sapphic nuns to the ceaseless caresses of octopi in Japanese shunga, Saintclair has developed a unique style with a distinctive contemporary take on eroticism from a vantaged (and still a rarity in erotic art) female perspective.

The English philosopher Francis Bacon is quoted as saying the job of the artist is to always deepen the mystery. While there is nothing more mysterious in human experience than sex, involving as it does the body, mind and soul in conjuration like no other comparable activity, the erotic artist is placed in a paradoxical position. After all, the role of erotic art is, by its very definition, to show and tell. Revealing too much strips away the mystery and the initial charm is soon lost. Revealing  too little, however, means it isn’t erotic art. Apollonia Saintclair performs that miraculous balancing act of showing us just enough to deepen the mystery and leaving us longing for more.

Apollonia Saintclair- Le silence des cigales (The midnight lights)

Apollonia Saintclair-Les cinq âmes soeurs (The five soulmates)

Apollonia Saintclair-La rencontre rapprochée ( The close encounter)

Apollonia Saintclair- La mort douce (The sweet death)

Apollonia Saintclair-La Trouvaille (There You Are…)

Apollonia Saintclair-La Bonne Poire (The Juicy Fruit) 2016

Apollonia Saintclair-L’Itaphalle (Can’t Get of your love, Darling)

Apollonia Saintclair-L’invocation (The summoning)

Apollonia Saintclair- L’affût (Lying in wait)

Dreams of Desire 32 (Sleeping Girl)

Toyen

An exquisite drawing by Toyen of a sleeping girl, one of her favourite themes, being watched by a sea-horse. The heavy shading, fissures and the architectural elements adds an illusionistic depth to the drawing, that manages to convey a dream-like sensuality with an admirable simplicity.

Dreams of Desire 29 (Sitting Nude)

Sitting Nude-Toyen 1932

As I have noted in my previous posts on the leading Czech Surrealist Toyen, she was obsessed with the erotic and all through her life she produced remarkable line drawings of a directly pornographic nature. The drawings usually feature sleeping women dreaming of huge phalluses. Also predominate are labia-like flowers, allusions to vaginal openings and a myriad of tongues and brightly lipstick-painted mouths.

Above is one of her less explicit drawings, however the sitting nude radiates a full and frank sensuality and this charming drawing has an undeniable attraction.