English presentation

Exposé anglais

Ben Turnbull, Hero II, 2010

I’m going to talk about the notion of Myths and heroes. First of all I would like to give a definition of this topic. Generally it encompasses (englobe) not only fictional heroes of myth and legend often endowed (doté) with great strength or ability but also the heroes nowadays, a person admired for his achievement, noble qualities and great courage. And by myth I hear an ancient story about gods, heroes and magic but also a theme or character type embodying (incarne) an idea. To illustrate the notion, I have chosen one documents and more exactly a collage on wood realized by Ben Turnbull in 2010. This artwork is entitled Hero II and it portrays a fireman which is emerging thanks to the superposition of faces of comic book heroes. The tiny faces of familiar characters almost disappear into the collage until you look closely enough to see. We can recognize Captain America, Daredevil, The Fantastic Four, Batman, Spiderman and Hulk. More specifically it is a representation of the heroes of September 11th who climbed up the stairs of the Twin Towers when everyone else was rushing downwards, in order to save lives after the terrorist attacks. That is why on the man’s helmet there is the number 11.  Indeed, the man is wearing a uniform so he embodies a role, he is a member of the emergency services, but he embodies also courage. We can consider that this man is a hero recognized by society because of his abnegation. Furthermore, the title of the painting is non-descript. Thus, Turnbull reinforces the anonymity of the heroes of 9/11. However, it is this exact anonymity that renders this fireman even more inspirational because no one knows who he is to thank him or congratulate him. Moreover, I think that Turnbull wanted to reinforce this man’s status as a hero by creating his face out of those of comic book heroes known. This suggests that these everyday heroes of 9/11 are in fact heroes in disguise as they go about their everyday lives such as Batman, Spiderman...

Consequently, Ben Turnbull was inspired by the events of 9/11 to pay homage to all the firemen and the policemen that risked their lives to serve their duty that day. And, he wants to draw out the viewer’s attention to honor the memory of this day by celebrating the everyday heroism of these men and women. Ultimately, there is a relationship between the character’s heroism and the mythology that we’ve wrapped around the idea of 9/11.

I was just born when this terrorist attacks happened but I followed on TV those that have occurred in France these last years and I think that we don’t talk enough about the heroism of firemen, police, ambulance… We must not forget that these people demonstrate courage and honor as Ben Turnbull wanted to represent in his artwork.

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