Extinguish My Eyes

“Extinguish my eyes, I'll go on seeing you. 
Seal my ears, I'll go on hearing you.
 And without feet I can make my way to you,
without a mouth I can swear your name.

Break off my arms, I'll take hold of you
with my heart as with a hand.
Stop my heart, and my brain will start to beat.
And if you consume my brain with fire, I'll feel you burn in every drop of my blood.” -Rainer Maria Rilke

Saint Tarcisius,Alexandre Falguière, 1868

Beautific Rapture
The expression of this sculpture moved me to reinterpret it as a painting. I have been using sculptures as a base for many of my paintings since the late 80's. In the beginning, I would sculpt my own pieces, translate them into a photo then a painting. Over the years I have taken photos of sculptures from various museums. With the web, I don't have to travel as far to find inspiring images to reinterpret. They are now at my fingertips. While some of the sculptures are famous some are more obscure. I'm looking for a gaze that moves me.
After painting this last summer I let it sit over a year before I decided to blend the text of Rilke with the face of this sculpture by Falguiere which can be found at the Musee d'Orsay and the MET.