The Parrhesia Diptych: Cassandra and Clytemnestra (2022)

Abstract

This submission details The Parrhesia Diptych: Cassandra and Clytemnestra (2022), a painting sequence by Yvonne Salmon. Images of the two paintings that make up the diptych are included alongside an explanatory text, which outlines the piece as a whole. "The Parrhesia Diptych," is composed of two reclaimed canvases overlaid with 24 carat gold leaf. The artwork symbolically reclaims the voices of two figures from Greek classical literature, Cassandra and Clytemnestra. It looks at the intersection of authority systems and Greek mythological systems, to interrogate how we might speak truth to power. By excoriating the gold leaf to reveal imagined sigils, Salmon emphasizes the power of myth and truth to challenge authority. The text also details how the work was physically transformed through its journey and interaction with different elements, symbolizing change and resistance. Finally, the text makes clear that by physically ingesting some of the gold leaf, the artist integrates the artwork into their own body, thus combining three systems: personal, political and mythological.