The Youngest Daughter

I created both of these in the one day, and I like that they have formed a little dyptych, a before and after narrative.

As I worked on the first piece, the story to her character slowly came to resemble that of what I call "The Youngest Daughter". Most fairy-tale Kings will have many daughters (3, 7 or 12), the youngest of whom is usually the prettiest, or the kindest.

I was also reminded of Bianca, the younger of the two sisters in Shakespeare's play "The Taming of the Shrew". In the play there is a wealthy father with two daughters, Katharina and Bianca. Both girls are beautiful, but the older has a sharp tongue, heavy sarcasm and a nasty personality. Bianca, the younger one, is of course the perfect dream girl. The father has sworn that until the older is wed, the younger may not have suitors.

The Youngest Daughter

For the second piece, in a last minute decision, I decided to paint the rose on the table red. How funny that such a tiny decision would concrete the narrative for the whole piece. I've called it "The Proposal", and she doesn't look so happy anymore.

The Proposal