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Between Lions and Men

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Artwork Description:

Title: Between Lions and Men

“Hektor, I’ll have no talk of pacts with you,
forever unforgiven as you are.
As between men and lions there none…”
– The Iliad by Homer, Book 22, Page 523

This artwork is an exploration of the pride and rage felt by Achilles following the death of his companion Patroclus which culminates in his meeting with Hector, where in Homer’s The Iliad Achilles is so overcome with emotion that he metaphorically becomes the beastly lion that Homer constantly compared him to through similes up until this point. The piece is largely inspired by the line, “There can be no covenants between men and lions,” which Achilles says to Hector in his meeting with him, completely identifying himself with the lion and as a fully separate entity to Hector. Through focusing on this area of the myth, I explored the rage and grief of Achilles that turns him into a shell of himself and can be argued as the true moment of his downfall rather than his death – as the loss of Patroclus causes him to completely lose himself.

 

Artist Bio:
Lydia Ridley is an 18 year old predominantly self-taught artist based in South Yorkshire, England. She works in both traditional and digital mediums, primarily exploring religious and mythological tales and aesthetics in her subject matter. Much of her work is inspired by Baroque paintings, particularly those of Caravaggio. Her use of symbolism and dark imagery largely reflect underlying themes of homoeroticism, queerness, mortality, and identity.

Ridley spent two years from the age of 16 studying A Level Fine Art at her local college, from which she graduated with an A* in 2023. Up until this point, she was entirely self-taught. Following this, she has gone on to showcase her artwork in various exhibitions and work on expanding her portfolio. Her current focus is creating oil paintings and refining her singular style.