Mo, Mohammed, Wendy, and Sandro, Rubens, 2014

Mo, Mohammed, Wendy, and Sandro, Rubens, 2014

Inspired by Peter Paul Rubens, Cain Slaying Abel, 1608-9.

We chose this painting because we liked the use of light and shadow and we liked the fact that they were posed in the act of fighting. We particularly liked the smooth brushwork, the palette of colours, and that it was painted in oil on oak wood that had warped over time.

In our research we found out he was working in the 17th century and that he had a studio in Antwerp. After he made the painting it was never sold, and it never left his studio. We think that Rubens never sold the painting because he really liked the story. This inspired us to make an animation about the fact that Rubens never sold his painting.

We made a blackboard using blackboard paint and drew onto it using chalks. We drew one scene at a time from our storyboard and took a picture, we would then erase the image and draw the next one; this is called stop-frame animation. We also recorded sounds to use in our animation, including footsteps, voices, and page turning which we then applied to the correct frame.

Inspired by:

Peter Paul Rubens, Cain Slaying Abel, 1608-09

Peter Paul Rubens, Cain Slaying Abel, 1608-09

Cain and Abel were the two eldest sons of Adam and Eve. Both made offerings to God but when Cain’s sacrifice was rejected he killed his brother in a jealous rage. In this early painting by Rubens, the figures are still heavily influenced by the artist’s experience in Italy, particularly his study of the sculpture of classical antiquity and the work of Michelangelo.