'Benefits Supervisor Sleeping' painting
 

Has anyone seen the painting, 'Benefits Supervisor Sleeping' by Lucian Freud? It recently sold for a record $US33.64 million.

If you haven't read about it and seen the painting, google it! I would love to know what you think of it.

I don't know, I can't say I like the painting at all. I mean Peter Paul Rubens painted heavy women, but they seemed to celebrate the women. This one seems to revel in presenting the woman as an oddity.

Anne,

Thank you for sharing your thoughts! I got the same feeling. At first, I thought it was commendable, but then...I don't know, it just doesn't seem like (as you said) the woman is being celebrated. For instance, there is a photography project going on right now called The Full Body Project, and those photos are definately celebratory.

I am not an artist or art critic, but here's what the artist says...

The artist himself said he painted to "astonish, disturb, seduce, convince" and described Benefits Supervisor Sleeping as his "most important work".

My take on the artist's intended message is based on the couch -- a stark realistic depiction but attractive, feminine, and well padded!

Even though I am a very artistic person, I always feel sceptical in any art form with an overweight model. I mean there are time I catch myself thinking "Does artist X draws this because he/she likes the overweight body or just because he/she thinks 'slim equal current beauty norm so let's be radical and use the fat person to get famous'

I don't say I don't enjoy it. I loved some of the Full Body Project photos but I am always a bit skeptical (I think I tend to over-analyse things). ^.^o