The Adorant- Large and Small

I completed two versions of “The Adorant.” They are based on a fresco in ancient Akrotiri.

To read more about Akrotiri, and the other art I have made based on it, click HERE.

The Adorant 20x16 ©Leslie Peterson Sapp

The Adorant 12x6 ©Leslie Peterson Sapp

One is 12x6 inches, and the other is 20x16 inches.

The frescos of Akrotiri are just crumbled vestiges, and had to be reassembled like a puzzle.

To emulate the effect of the fragmented frescos, I slathered fiber paste and molding paste over heavy watercolor paper. When this was dry, I drew and painted the figures, I then tore the image up, and reassembled it on a panel.

Tearing up my art was strangely therapeutic! You can see a video of me doing this below!

For the small one, I experimented with different backgrounds and, because it is so small and simple, I thought the flat, white ground is best.

For the larger one, I decided I would like to try having a scene BEHIND the fragments, as if we could look through the fresco pieces to a world beyond.

The scene behind the figure is from a different fresco in Akrotiri, called the Flotilla. It is a frieze mural, about a foot and a half high, that goes all around a room. It features two fantastical ports, with a flotilla of beautiful boats traveling from one to the other.

The Flotilla Frieze, Akrotiri, Greece

The Saffron Gatherers ©Leslie Peterson Sapp

The dolphins that I featured in my piece, The Saffron Gatherers come from this mural.

I am enchanted by the image of this woman gazing out from her island home, to watch these splendid sea crafts cruising by.

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A special sneak peak into one of the more fun moments of being an artist...