The Quirks of Inspiration 3

My ongoing "Quirks of Inspiration" series (previous posts here & here) aims to feature one of my recent pieces and note the (usually unintentional) connections to a famous work that I greatly admire. Below is another example: 2013 latex figure painting Capaneus scaling the Theban walls. I set out to capture the posture of a figure pulling itself up. The title came afterward - referencing the character from Aeschylus' Seven Against Thebes.

 Capaneus scaling the Theban walls, latex paint on canvas, 47" x 25" (diptych), 2013, private collection, West Bloomfield, MI 

Once the painting was done, I noted the position of the arms, the tilt of the head and torso. It struck me that the placement of these features was similar in spirit to the ones in Egon Schiele's self portrait as St. Sebastian.

Egon Schiele, Self Portrait as St. Sebastian, pencil on paper, 12.7" x 19", 1914

I've always loved this drawing and the similar painting Schiele made for a Galerie Arnot exhibition in 1915. Its easy to see how they could make such a lasting impression on my work.

Egon Schiele, Self Portrait as St. Sebastian (poster), gouache, black crayon and ink on cardboard, 19.6" x 26", 1915