Martyrs & Sacrifices  (series of 4 drawings)

Martyrs & Sacrifices (series of 4 drawings)

MARTYRS & SACRIFICES
(Series – consisting of 4 drawings)

Medium: Charcoal drawings on Fabriano Academia paper (300g)
Dimensions: 150 cm x 380 cm (each drawing)
Date: 09/2014


This artwork consists out of a series of four charcoal drawings on Fabriano Academia paper (300 g), which should be considered as one work. In the gallery space they are displayed as suspended paper drapes (unframed) with attached, thin, wooden plinths at the top.

These drawings can be regarded as a series of self-portraits exploring the theme of “martyrdom” (“witness”) and “sacrifice” (“outpouring”) on a personal, social, political and spiritual level. The drawings are birthed from the soil of personal experience, yet, can also be contextualized within our present South African context in a “post- apartheid” South Africa, as a memorial to all unknown individuals who have suffered and given up their lives towards establishing the freedom and well-being of others in their personal lives as well as within a broader social context.

The word “martyr” comes from the Greek word “witness”. The idea of being and becoming a sacrificial witness to “truths” whilst facing the possible sacrifice of one’s own interests and even one’s own life towards the freedom of others, are being explored in these works. Notions of sacrifice and suffering are brought into context with ideas related to transience and human fragility through the exploration and use of charcoal as symbolic material on the paper’s surface.

Furthermore, the actual brushstrokes and the experimental and coincidental element through which the charcoal powder and the working process itself created unforeseen “landscapes” at the lower parts of these drawings, are explored as a “visual language”.

Concluding the description of these works, I refer to the following (Genesis 4:10):
And He said:

“What have you done? “

“The voice of your brother’s blood cries out to Me from the ground.”

For further viewing of my other artwork, please refer to my personal website -http://mariekekruger.com

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Comments 1

Marieke Kruger
8 years ago
Thank you Christian....indeed I view this as a great compliment.....Dali's "Christ of Saint John of the Cross" happens to be one of my favorite works of his.

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