Painting Details

This powerful image is an abstract depiction of the Trojan Priest Laocoon a figure from the timeless poem, The Iliad.  Laocoon was a priest who warned the Trojans not to take in the great wooden horse left behind by the Greeks.  As a result, he was tragically punished by the gods as a great serpent emerged from the sea to kill him and his young sons. 

Varriano exhibits the great struggle through block-like interlocking forms contrasted by flowing swirls of paint that result in strong yet svelte depths of surface texture.