The Abduction of Snape
by Dempixies



Challenge: Based upon Corregio's The Abduction of Ganymede, originally listed as The Rape of Ganymede, which is actually the title of a similar work by a man named Rubens.
Medium: Ink and Photoshop






Notes: The original painting is based upon the Greek myth about a young prince named Ganymede who was so handsome he caught the attention of Zeus. Zeus, in the form of an eagle, kidnapped Ganymede and took him home to Olympus. From that time on, Ganymede was the cup-bearer of the gods. (He was also known as Aquarius, incidentally.)

When I first looked at the piece I originally considered doing it on Harry's parents, or perhaps Cedric - someone who was killed. But the more I read, the more I thought of someone else.

I chose Snape because of the interesting correlation between cup-bearer and the making of potions. I also considered "rape" as a form of exploitation, which lead me to Snape again. It is my personal interpretation of canon that Snape was, through a combination of personal vendettas and well-planned manipulation, brought over to Voldemort's side. (There were also a lot of interesting things about power roles in homoerotic relationships during ancient Greece that really reminded me of your average dark lord in relation to his subordinates.)

The hooded figure was initially meant to be a Dementor, but could also be a Death Eater. My brother, not an HP fan, thought it was Death. I rather like the ambiguity.

I wanted to color the original linework, but I couldn't decide what to use, and then my mouse died so that I couldn't color it fully on the computer, and finally I ended up running out of time. Someday I'll color it by hand.



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