Ektopia

A little while ago I commented that I had discovered an artist that had completely blown me away. The artist was Saturno Butto and I hadn’t expected to have been so overwhelmed by a collection of oil paintings that could have been painted by an old master if it wasn’t for the inclusion of modern medical paraphernalia that places a more recent date on the work. The collection of works on his site is massive and I’ve spent ages checking each and every one out. Anyways, I’m not here to bang on about his website again, I’m here to bang on about his book, Martyrologium that’s been published by the Italian independent Sotto Mondo.

It’s quite a book. Along with having gold page edging and a red ribbon bookmark it’s also got a gold embossed leatherette cover that feels a lot like a bible. This is quite appropriate actually as Martyrologium is packed full of religious references. This imagery takes many forms; obvious and suggested. Traditional alters can be seen as well as make-shift ones. Crucifixes are plentiful as are halos (mostly back-lighting the females in Saturno’s paintings) and the scenes all look like they’ve been lit by candle-light. All in all, you just know it’s all about religion. However, you soon realise that the worship here is nothing to do with any of the world’s popular accepted religions. The worship here is completely carnal and it’s as exhilarating as it is challenging and uncomfortable in places.

The obsession with medical instrumentation is also plainly obvious and I share such a fascination. I understand that the this fascination is a full-on fetish for some and this is the kind of thing that comes across in many of Saturno’s works. Sometimes it’s subtle like a halo of tissue holding forceps or a lap-full of instruments mimicking the triangular shape of the subject’s mons pubis (sorry, it’s not often I get a chance to use medical terminology!). Other times it’s explicit like the act of catheterisation, off-canvas acts of internal examination and even act’s of general caring (like the teeth brushing in the image above) etc. It all seems to be based around sado-masochistic role-play. Scarification, blood-letting and candle waxing can be added to the above list of private mischief.

The powerful women in Saturno’s work are often seen with halos and even horns. Sometimes these horns look anatomical while others look like strange accessories or at least they look like some kind of supportive adjunct that is there to hold the horns in place. This instantly makes an ex-catholic boy like me think of the devil and other evil beings but Saturno enlightens up by confirming that the imagery recalls the pre-Christian idea of a Goddess Mother or just to highlight a central character. I know one thing from studying these pieces, these women are worshipped, that’s for sure. How they are worshipped isn’t quite so clear as sometimes it’s by voyeurs and other times it’s more like self-worship.

No doubt buy now you’ve taken a good look at the images that I’ve included in this post. You’ll most probably either love them or hate them and that’s fine I guess. Even for me, and I’m rarely shocked, there’s a bitter-sweet attraction with his work. In fact, I’ve had to be very careful which photos I’ve chosen because there are many that I would imagine many viewers would find offensive (I assume that some may be offended by these ones too). That said, if you’re not instantly offended by these images then you are still in for quite a ride.

I can find the beauty in every one of his paintings but there are times where viewing some of his pieces are challenging to say the least. Seeing young naked and semi-naked girls was quite a shock. Other famous artists that have painted children like this are cited; Balthus, Egon Schiele, Gunter Brus and even the Chapman brothers, which is strange. Seeing the Chapman brothers’ sculptures never elicited the same reaction as seeing Saturno’s girls. Maybe it’s because of their realism. Maybe because the girl that he paints seems to be far from innocent. There’s a glint in her eye that’s frightening, especially in the image where she hovers inches from the ground in a Christ-like post but with her arms by her side. Powerful and provocative are words that don’t really cut it when looking at a painting like this one. There are other images that are equally haunting though. Some of his work shows none of the normal goings on that I’ve become accustomed too. The simple portraits that are scattered throughout leave you wondering more about what’s going on off the canvas or in the subject’s mind. They are simply astounding pieces of art.

So, Martyrologium’s not for the feint-hearted but it’s a beautiful book with a collection of thought provoking unusual imagery and is a 16.5cm by 22.5cm hardcover edition with all the great details that I’ve listed above. Take a look at Saturno’s site, lap up all the visual treats and if you like what you see you’ll absolutely love this book. I gather that I’ve you’re read this far then you probably do. As for as I know the only place to get a copy of Martyrologium is direct from Sotto Mondo and they do ship worldwide. Oh, and a final word of warning, Saturno’s site isn’t safe to view at work and Martyrologium probably won’t go down too well in the coffee room either!