Massacre of the Innocents... by Paul Peter Rubens is the piece of art that I chose to critique. This is a painting depicting an infanticide as written in the Gospel of Matthew. Those who are being killed are the innocents, the babies that have not yet lived, as eluded to in the title. This is a piece that captures a horrific scene described in holy texts; a scene of anguish and despair from the parents that attempt to stop the massacre. The most striking thing about this piece is how easily the numerous dead infants can be overlooked because of the murderers are much more powerful figures and prominent in this painting. The art word of the week is texture, which refers to "the surface quality of the work of art" (Schirrmacher & Fox, 2009, p. 144). Although you cannot see the texture of the painting, it has a rough, bumpy texture from the paint.
The artist is trying to give a visual representation of a horrific chapter in the Bible. The artist is perhaps inspiring those art viewers that do not know about the story to read more about it. Massacre of the Innocents is a powerful painting that makes me feel disgust and confusion, this biblical passage is often depicted but this may be the strongest depiction in the sheer horror in the adults that are trying to stop the massacre. I do not like this piece of art, though artists often depict tragedies, I much prefer aesthetically pleasing pieces rather than ones that depict a time in history, where innocent children were killed. This piece was probably highlighted because of the context, the children that are killed in the painting are coined "innocent" by the title which is the perfect adjective to use, as I have learned in ECE that all children start of as blank slates and it is a good education they need to fill their minds.
References
Schirrmacher, R., & Fox, J.E. (2009). Art and Creative Development for Young Children (6th Ed.). Belmont, CA: Delmar.
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