THE STRUGGLE OF JACOB the-struggle-of-jacob | Page 24

At that point, in order to establish the precise dimensions of the
work, the artist has to take account not only of the hypothetical
destination, but realistically with the actual means at his disposal,
the space within his studio, the tools, the budget...
I also immediately liked the idea of a triptych because it links
to an ancient tradition in Western sacred art. There are
countless examples, some of which are expressly narrative
works. One in particular is the Triptych of Mary, known as the
Miraflores Altarpiece, of circa 1440, by the Flemish artist Rogier
van der Weyden. It includes scenes of The Nativity, The
Deposition of Christ and The Risen Christ Appearing to Mary.
At that point the number 3 determined the metre of the work.
In music the march is in “2 time”, corresponding in name and in
fact to the cadence of 2 feet and to one linear direction. In the
waltz “triple time” seems to throw itself off-balance towards the
following beat, it is evolutionary, circular. 2, 4 and 8 meter
describe a space, while 3, 6 and 12 are the pace of time. So:
- ternary rhythm is appropriate for a narration;
- there are 3 visual components in my paintings (the
backgrounds, the geometric objects and the quotations);
- the dimensions of each painting are fixed at 210 x 70 cm, the
height being 3 times the base;
- there are 3 emblematic scenes: the physical clash, the verbal
confrontation, and spiritual resolution;
- there are 3 sentences taken from the biblical text and used as
quotational captions: