"You're Next"
Oil on canvas
South Africa, the Timbavati. This young male lion has been feeding on a buffalo for more than two days — there are seven of them sharing it. We observe the scene with the vultures: flies swarm, the smell is strong, almost unbearable. The lions are replete but will not leave the carcass for some time yet.
Through the buffalo's horn, the young male suddenly fixes his gaze on me. No aggression, no flight — just that calm, direct look that seems to say: 'Don't move. You're next.' It is that precise moment I wanted to paint.
The composition is built around this confrontation of gazes: the lion in the foreground, the buffalo's horn as a frame within the frame, and the eye — that yellow, fixed eye that occupies the centre of the painting. The tones are dark, warm, saturated with that afternoon African light. The texture of the coat, the blood, the dust — everything contributes to the immediacy of the scene.
I wanted the viewer to feel what I felt that day: that slight unease mingled with fascination, that privilege of being there, so close, and that absolute certainty of being at the bottom of the food chain.
I — Original Work
"You're Next"
Original work sold — Private Collection
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II — Canvas Editions
Numbered art print, hand-signed by the artist. On 375 gsm matte canvas. Comes with a certificate of authenticity and the artist's double signature.
Shipping: rolled in a tube or framed ready to hang.
