Here's are works by Henry Fuseli, one by Edvard Munch and still another by Phillip Burne-Jones that echo that scene where the Monster, in the Edison version of "Frankenstein", peers through the curtains at the Doctor who has fainted dead away on the bed. All of these paintings mention vampires, nightmares and/or incubuses in their titles, and all were executed in the 1800s.This symbolistic notion of "the nightmare" and it's invasion of the bed-chamber is found in a lot of classic works of art of this period. A study of these would make interesting fodder for a paper, since this notion of "creeping terror" pops-up in "Nosferatu" and "Calagari" as well (and probably others that I haven't thought of off the top of my head, laying here at 5 am, unable to sleep....wait a minute...what was that!? Arrrgh!!....Heh. heh. heh.).
Tip of the hat to Dr. Robinson who mentioned this great scene while in discussion over the film!
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Beautiful art. The way the bodies are depicted is especially appealing to me as they are quite expressive and, personally, I feel it is the key to the success of each piece. Its funny reading mentions of "creeping terrors" and strange fearful nocturnal visits from demons, vampires, aliens etc. Now that modern science is learning about night terrors and other hallucinatory sleep disorders, a lot of nightmarish stuff now seems somewhat mundane. Though that's not to day I don't get freaked out walking through my very dark house after watching Event Horizon, Jacob's Latter, or something along those lines. I think we as human being like to be scared, it reminds us we are alive.
ReplyDeleteI don't get the horses in the top two.... what is that?
ReplyDeleteThis is the symbolic, nocturnal vehicle to which you may be delivered to the "other side" of consciousness. Simple enough, don't you think?
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