Aquarius
Aquarius is a triptych of self-portraits depicting the evolution of my self-image and the symbolisation of my inner world, spiritual, fictitious and intimate, drawing on astrology and symbolism. It started as a way to documents changes I went through during a time of reflecting and spiritual discoveries, and culminated into three paintings of 2 x .75 meters.
I used the symbol of Aquarius, the Water-Carrier, who receives and pours water out of two vases, as a metaphor for the inner transformation I had to make from the abuse I suffered to the kindness I want to embody. It feels logical to end my experience of school with this project on self-reflection, as it was school that marked me in the worst way in my formative years.
The paintings each represent an alternate self, either ruled by one aspect of the zodiac (sun/moon/rising) or different levels of the development of my consciousness and spirituality. The first one could be a corporeal self looking to untie blockages in love and intimacy; the second one experiences and makes sense of the world with their strong imagination, and the third one has achieved a higher state of consciousness through this imagination.
The works that had first inspired this project were 19th century historical paintings and portraits from the romanticist, pre-raphaelite and symbolist movements; their influence can be found in the change of format and in the poses of the figures I painted, as well as in the use of gold leaf and astronomic symbols. This work plays around the themes of body image, costume, colour, sexuality and kink, astrology and spirituality.

Aquarius the Water Carrier







