In quiet awe: The lunatic of Étretat
A perfect piece for the month of November and Scorpio season.
Especially since it’s said that people born during this astrological period have an intense glance. BUT MA’AM?! I need you to stare somewhere else because my unpredictable Sagittarius ass will not have it,
thank yew.
Hugues Merle, ’The lunatic of Etretat’ (1871)
When I first saw this painting, I noticed her tearful red eyes first and then her pose. The way her body is positioned suggests to me that she is protecting someone.. or something. I tried it out for myself, recreating it, and it was not comfortable. And I remember saying it out loud that she looks like a mother protecting herself and her baby, but exactly where is the baby because, that ain’t it.
Because why is she cradling a log? Why is she sitting beside a well? Barefoot during the autumn season? Isn’t she cold? Freezing even? And why is she staring at me like that? Or is she staring at me at all?
She comes across as painfully tense and protective of something, someone and/or herself. Maybe all three options are true? What happened to her baby? Was there ever a baby? Is there a baby only in her imagination? If a baby even existed, was there a war going on in which she lost her child?
At first glance I thought, who the hell is this crazy lady?
But the more you pay attention to the painting and its details, the more you symphatize with her. There is anguish here and a desperate kind of tenderness. Whatever is happening in her mind, her distress feels awfully real. How would you react if you saw this visibly deranged, tormented and agonized woman in real life?
At the end of the day, this painting is overwhelmingly fascinating and eye-catching, no pun intended. So many questions and uncertainty that needs to be answered but that I, at the same time, don’t want answered. I adore the mystery of it all and her eyes that keeps following me long after I’ve looked away.
If you wish to learn more: Art Deco – You can’t unsee this painting (video)
Other paintings I’ve written about: Lover of art (Category)
Portrait of a black woman
Fallen angel
The swing
Birth of Venus
The unequal marriage
