[LINK] "Anne of Green Gables depicted as martyr"

[rfmcdonald]

This CBC article is, well, interesting, perhaps in the sense of "interesting" but perhaps not.

An Ottawa exhibition that depicts the martyrdom of famous Canadian icons could upset some fans of Anne of Green Gables.

Thorneycraft's image is based on the Martyrdom of St. Agatha, by Francisco de Zurbaran. Artist Diana Thorneycroft uses Canadian icons to show how religion and torture have come together over the centuries, and her exhibit includes a photograph of a mutilated Anne of Green Gables doll.

"She is standing with a plate, and on her plate are her severed breasts," Thorneycroft told CBC News Monday.

"I'm totally aware that this work could upset some people."

The image is based on a 17th-century painting by the Spanish painter Francisco de Zurbaran depicting St. Agatha, who was tortured when she refused to marry a pagan prince in the third century.

"Having her breasts severed was just step 1," said Thorneycroft.

"The guy who wanted to marry her, he did monstrous things to her. It was truly horrible. This went on then, and this is going on today. The things we are capable of doing to each other, the list is phenomenal."

The photo included with the article makes the work look thought-provoking, at least, and Thorneycraft's idea of making the religious past contemporary isn't that original or that unacceptable. But is her work unartistically cheesy and gratuitous? I don't know.