Symvisio III

“Sisyphus”

Oil on Canvas, 48” x 174”, 2003

In this symvisio, I have tried to set the color and the form on the same footing. In order to achieve this task, I have reduced the structural form of the composition to the two most common geometric shapes, i.e. circles and rectangles. Also, I have let my color scheme be strongly dominated by green and violet. Both green and violet have special meaning for me beyond their traidional symbolism. Furthermore, I have used the so-called golden ratio through out the unfoldments to enhance a sense of compositional rhythm and unity.

     Many artists, both traditional and modern, have painted the Sisyphus' punishment and its symbolic meaning. Generally the subject is depicted as a man pushing a large boulder up a mountain. To set this theme in a symvisio format, I have chosen six semi-precious stones, i.e., amethyst, new jade, African turquoise, pink jasper, malachite and unakite, to represent the mountain. And I have chosen optical magnifications, as well as distortions, to stand for his struggles.