'Borrowing Happiness'

People tend to bury their feelings or distract themselves from any pain. Alcohol is often turned to when wanting to create a temporary sense of happiness, escaping life for the night. This can however be dangerous if being used on a regular or daily basis, letting the individual neglect the core problem that is causing them such unhappiness. My painting, inspired by the work of Caravaggio, depicts a scene of excited, happy people drinking to have a great time. Looking closely however, you can see how this is a facade.

There are hidden symbols scattered throughout my painting (images below), all referring to the problems alcohol can cause or attempt to cover. Tattooed on his wrist is the alcoholics anonymous symbol, designed to show how a large consumption of alcohol can result in uncontrollable addiction, whilst the depression semi-colon symbol can be seen on another characters wrist. This suggests how the figure may be suffering with depression and turns to alcohol to create a sense of happiness to escape her problems. The two ripped playing cards with hearts on suggest a broken relationship between the two figures holding them, whilst the obscurity of these symbols show how people bury their problems. Although the figures appear to be happy, many problems can be seen through the façade.