Oedipe 1964

Charles Lapicque painted Oedipe sometime in the twentieth century. Born in 1898, Lapicque lived through two world wars, and his own artistic journey moved through various styles, including a fascination with early scientific concepts and then the human form. Here, in Oedipe, we see this trajectory. Lapicque departs from conventional representations, choosing to offer an alternative narrative through abstraction and color. In shades of purples, blues, reds and yellows, there are two figures; one that appears as a shadow above the other who stands in a noble stance. Are we looking at the Oedipus of Sophocles? Or a new reading of the Greek figure? Lapicque once said, “I am not trying to paint what I see, but what I think.” As you stand here, consider what might be reflected back to you. What do you see? What do you think?