Ophelia by Arantza Sestayo

"For years I felt need to paint a work about the death of Ophelia for several reasons. The first refers to psychology since I am especially attracted to the extreme fragility of the human mind. The second is the aesthetic part that in my view gathers a wide range of elements of great attractiveness, such as the hypnotic image of fabric swayed by the movement of water, as well as the parallelism between the mind and the pond, which darkens as it deepens. Through the gaze of Ophelia one can contemplate the emptiness.

I have painted this work in oil on canvas with a previous base of primer, starting with a very simple sketch that I have been detailing before moving to color. In the first coat of paint I have introduced the tones and the setting that seemed appropriate to create an atmosphere which could be combined: the naive with the dark. In the second layer I worked with more detail. Finally, I accentuated the brighter and darker areas to finish defining the contrasts, enjoying it along way." – ARANTRZA SESTAYO