Study of a Figure in the Court of Queen Mab (5)
Image Description
A nude androgynous figure is sitting on the floor in a very dark room. Their legs are drawn up to their chest, with one arm wrapped around them, and the other reaching down to their feet. They are looking directly at us.
Their hair is shorn very short, and their skin appears to be daubed with blue/white paint, with a green stripe down the front of their face and around their eyes. Around their neck they are wearing three small cowbells on a rope.
Artist’s Notes
A little explanation from the related blog post: More Studies from the Court of Queen Mab:
I did some early sketches back in September and October. In the set from September the slave figure was wearing a white ruff (just as the courtiers and queen do in the pastel drawings), and the figure was only differentiated by their pose and lack of horns/antlers.
My friend Tash who was life-modelling for the second set of sketches suggested instead that bells might be more suitable as there are folktales of bells being associated with faeries - either heralding their appearance or being a defence against them.
And so I strung some small brass-like cowbells on a rope, and it became a prisoner’s collar. Interestingly to me, someone on social media commented on it looking a bit like a Celtic torc, which is probably exaggerated by the ashen-grey body paint and green body markings. I am very pleased with this serendipitous resemblance.
Model’s pronouns: they/them.