SAN FRANCISCO - TitanMan Alex Baresi is the subject of a new painting by world-renowned Australian artist Ross Watson.
Watson's choice of models is particularly apropos: Partially draped in blue fabric, the Italian Titan Media star stands before Italian Baroque artist Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio's John the Baptist.
The unveiling of Caravaggio's painting in 1602 caused a scandal in Rome. Commissioned by the Cardinal Del Monte, the depiction of the Christian saint naked and smiling at the viewer while clutching a ram - a symbol of lust - was unprecedented.
Baresi, too, is associated with lust. He was voted International Gay Porn Star 2007. Watson's two-feet-six-inches by two-feet oil-on-board painting, called Untitled #01/08 (after Caravaggio, 1600; featuring Alex Baresi), deftly fuses classical and contemporary metaphors.
Limited-edition Giclée prints of the original, each printed on archival museum-quality paper, hand-numbered and signed by the artist, are available from Ross Watson Gallery in Melbourne, Australia. Ten percent of each sale will be donated to a charity named by Baresi: Münchner AIDS-Hilfe, a Munich-based AIDS relief organization.
Watson's art is in the collections of major museums like the National Gallery of Australia. In addition, distinguished private collectors including Sir Elton John and J.D. Wolfensohn, former World Bank president, collect his work. Watson's previous major painting featured Scissor Sisters front-man Jake Shears.
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