Tuesday, May 01, 2012

Disturbia(rt)

During our visit to the Modern Art exhibit at the National Museum, my classmates and I found ourselves in front of this very haunting and disturbing painting.


It was entitled "Drowning" and shows a family of 8 as they're submerging in floodwaters.

According to the description, it's an antithesis of the usual images of drowning. When people drown, they're usually in a state of panic, disarray, hands flailing and trying to hang on to anything they can put their hands on.

But if you look at the painting, the drowning family is calm and serene, as if trusting and waiting for someone to save them from death. You can even see the mother's hand as she clutches a rosary.


It was so disturbing, we left the gallery all pensive and quiet. And it took us about an hour and a half before we could talk about our feelings about the painting.

Now that's one powerful piece of art.

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