THE SIRENS OF ALFRED 20TH ISSUE

 

 

 

“Elle vous l’allumera”, 1972, oil on canvas (114 x 146 cm) privately owned ©adagp

 

 

 

“A painting is made like a tapestry canvas, first arrives a subject that is installed, that is built (I am a former cubist), and in the frame, one sets what he likes.

As to myself, I am used to settle in the fore part the persons that I wish to show. It happens that some parts of the canvas are empty; for instance in the edges, then you have to arrange the subject for the best.

To be inspired is every day’s life. One can use anything at one condition: that a nice painting emerges.”

 

 

 

 

“The siren with the black wolf”, 1949, oil on canvas (114 x 146 cm) privately owned. ©adagp

 

 

 

 

“The siren with the black wolf, 1944, watercolour on paper, privately owned. ©adagp

“The siren with the black wolf”, 1950, watercolour on paper, privately owned.  ©adagp

 

Some mythology:

 

A siren (from ancient Greek and Latin: Siren) is an hybrid mythological creature: half woman and half bird (ancient tradition of Greek/Roman origin) or half woman and half fish (middle age Scandinavian tradition).

According to the tradition by Homer, sirens are goddesses of the sea located close to the straight of Messina in Sicily. Musicians with exceptional gifts, they used to seduce sailors, who attracted by the magic of their songs, their lyres and flutes, lost any sense of orienting themselves, then breaking their ships on rocks before being eaten by these enchantresses.

They are described in song XII of Odyssey as lying in the grass along the sides of the sea, with bones and dry flesh pieces around them, from the men that they have brought to their death.

Ulysses and his mates succeeded in discarding their seducing power. After having been warned by Circe, Ulysses had melted wax inserted in his sailors’ ears so that they could not hear the sirens, while he asked to be made fast to the mast of the ship, and ordered that if he asked to be made free, his men would have to make the lien still faster. So Ulysses was able to listen to their songs without being attracted by them. As a consequence, the sirens would have committed suicide by jumping from the rocks into the sea.

 

Extract of a Wikipedia article about sirens.

You can also read this other article dedicated to sirens: Link to this article.

 

 

 

While waiting for “the sirens of the rafts” in the next issue, you will find some examples of “the sirens of Alfred” hereunder.

 

 

 

 

 

“The quay of Valmy”, 1948, oil on canvas, privately owned. ©adagp

 

“The fall of Icarus” or “The little fall of Icarus with a siren”, 1963, oil on canvas, (33 x 55 cm) privately owned..  ©adagp

 

“Young man with the sirens on the beach”, 1963, water colour on paper, privately owned.  ©adagp

 

“View on Secretan Avenue”, 1974, oil on canvas, privately owned.©adagp

 

 

 

 

 

“Siren”, 1972, lead pencil on paper, privately owned. ©adagp

 

 

To know more:

 

“The little fall of Icarus with a siren” ,1963, has been shown:

 

1979, Retrospective, museum of paintings, from May 16th to August 20th,Grenoble