Martin Eder Paints Modern Joan of Arcs

For his most recent exhibition, Those Bloody Colours, presented at Galerie Eigen + Art in Berlin, Martin Eder featured lifelike paintings of women in a medieval time warp. Eder’s artworks are scaled true to life and rendered in vivid tones, imbuing them with a tactile and emotive quality with which one immediately connects. Gazing at the eyes of the women, cast downward as if in humble contemplation after battle, one desires the warriors to look up and out. While Eder’s subjects are dressed in shining armor and carry swords, they also wear pink nail polish and modern hair styles. Touches of soft femininity among stiff armor suggest the medieval costume is a metaphor for the protections 21st century women wear daily. The expressions of pain and sorrow further support this interpretation, leading viewers to experience solace with and compassion for the women depicted.