I saw bloody ribs sticking out of a partially devoured racoon, and a lushly painted Soutine of a flayed ox came to mind, along with the art history tidbit that he kept the carcass of the ox in his room, dousing it with blood from the butcher as he painted it to keep it "fresh". His neighbors complained of the stench.
Rembrandt's luminous and painterly treatment of that subject gave it an iconic edge. I think both of those works were painted in relative privacy. I'm sometimes self-conscious drawing and painting outside, in public view, and felt especially so while set up in front of a carcass and vultures. But, like flowers in various stages of growth and decay, the subject matter struck me as engaging and paintworthy. When I draw or paint, self-consciousness of being in public view disappears as I focus on the matter at hand.
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