Amanda Watarz     next        Fall 2010 index     156A
Assignment 2 Getty

An up and coming astronomer was hard at work late one night. He was on the brink of a groundbreaking discovery. A fellow astronomer with a competing idea knew that it was only a matter of time before this astronomer stole the spotlight from him. The competing astronomer devised a plan; He was going to poison the man's water so that he would never be able to announce his findings.  This was sabotage.

 My piece shows the moment after the astronomer drinks his water and is affected by the poison. He drops the glass (at close range so it doesn't break) spilling the water on the table. He drops his candle, which begins to burn the book he was reading. As he falls to his death, he attempts to grab onto the table, but his efforts are futile. 

Original painting: Astronomer by Candlelight
by Gerrit Dou, Dutch, late 1650s.