by alex eckford

The aspect of this image that first strikes the eye is men riding wild animals in circles around a pool of naked women, as they appear to yell and cheer excitedly. It is apparent that this scene is highlighting the sexual desires of mankind and how people express these desires. With this in mind, I could not help but think back to “Ecology without Nature” by Tim Morton, in which he states that “Ecofeminist criticism examines the ways in which the patriarchy has been responsible for environmental deterioration and destruction, and for sustaining a view of the natural world that oppresses women in the same way as it oppresses animals, life itself, or even matter itself.” The painting represents this idea all too well, depicting the men not only surrounding and hollering at the women, but also riding animals, and thus oppressing both nature and women simultaneously. In order to capture patriarchal oppression in one image, I used a painting called “Wide Eyes - The Lost One” by Margaret Keane. The meaning is found not only in the visual aspect: A small girl crying, clearly representing some sort of neglectful oppression, but in the story of the painting and its creator. Margaret Keane was a skilled painter, specializing in the large eyed portrait style she demonstrates in this piece. However, she employed her husband to help her sell paintings, and despite the fact that it started in good faith, he soon began taking credit for her work. He began to get all the glory for the pieces she was creating, and he would keep her locked inside churning out new artwork for him to sell. This went on for years until she finally took him to court, where she was able to prove that the work was hers. Keane’s story is almost more representative of the theme I am trying to convey, giving a real life example of how the patriarchy is able to take control so easily. Not only did her husband have no trouble taking credit for it, but she he was even able to prevent her from speaking out for years by threatening abuse, both of which would be much more difficult if they were not living in a male dominated society. The second piece I put in is named “Ovid’s Metamorphosis” by Hendrik Goltzius it depicts a man slowly turning into a werewolf as he tries escaping what appears to be a dinner table. I included this image because I think Bosch is attempting to blur the line between human and animal in his painting, and this picture accentuates his point. By painting men and wild animals in such close proximity, he is making them seem as if they are one, both relying on primal instincts as they run around the women. Adding the werewolf to the mix only furthers the meaning behind this image by combining the two into a tangible being, that represents fully what Bosch was hinting towards. The final image I added to the painting was “Guernica” by Picasso. Picasso created “Guernica” to depict the events of the bombing of Guernica during the Spanish civil war. In the painting, you can clearly make out different people and different animals, but given the abstract style it can be somewhat difficult to tell what is human and what is not. Furthermore, from the fact that it is depicting such a scary and somber time paired with the visuals of people suffering, you can tell that these characters are displaying their rawest emotions. Like the Bosch painting, they  are acting based on their most primal instincts, and in both pieces, humans and animals feel as one. Although Bosch depicts them lustful and rowdy and Picasso depicts them in mourning, in both you view as humans simply become a part of nature, and nothing more.