The Moor's Murders
From July 1963 to October 1965, a violent string of murders terrorized Britain. Myra Hindley and Ian Brady kidnapped and murdered 5 children. The first was Pauline Reade, 16, who went missing on July 12, 1963, on her way to a dance. They took her to the Moors outside of Manchester, raped, and then murdered her. That same year on November 23 they kidnapped 12-year-old John Kilbride. The following year on June 16th they kidnapped 12-year-old Keith Bennet, and then 10-year-old Lesley Downey on December 26. All murdered, raped and then left on the Moors. Their final victim was 17-year-old Edward Evans, on October 6th, 1965. Ian and Myra had moved in with Ian’s brother-in-law that year, who assisted in hiding the body of Edward and then immediately told police that night. Ian and Myra were both arrested October 7th. Throughout the investigation, they discovered John Kilbride and Lesley Downey’s body, as well as documentation of her torture. In 1966, they were most found guilty. Ian Brady was given life and Myra Hindley also received life in prison, and seven additional years. They were only charged with three of the five murders, since only three bodies had been discovered.
The Moors Murders quickly rose into notoriety in Britain. What was especially alarming to the public was the involvement of Myra Hindley in the abduction, rape, and murder of the children. While Myra insisted that Ian was forcing her to help him, it was undeniable that she helped with all parts of the crimes, and never stopped helping. The ideal of a woman being mothering and caring towards children was shattered when she was arrested and convicted.
This delve into the History before Lucian Freud painted Naked Girl in 1966, helps me explain the implications behind his painting. Naked Girl depicts a woman lying on her back on white fabric, not covering herself, but looking away from the observer with an uncomfortable expression. Her upper body and face is highlighted, while her lower body is darker, drawing your eyes from the center to lead to her face. Freud is particularly known for creating an empathetic bond between the subject and the observer. In this case, the subject is not called a woman, but a girl. While she has pubic hair, her body-type is thin and her breasts are not well-developed, causing the observer to associate her with youth. With the background of the Moors Murders, it is possible to link this disgusting assault on children with Freud’s depiction of this woman. Those murderers stripped away the lives and innocence of those children, regardless of their gender. The horror and fear that echoed in the public can be seen echoed here. This woman lies on a white background, a color associated with innocence, and the highlight on her body draws your eyes to the parts of her that appear young and helpless. Her expression causes you to feel uniquely uneasy for her.
This interpretation can also be linked with the influence of the casualties from World War Two. Freud sought for the observer to empathize with the subject. He also tried to make the subject feel as real as possible. During World War Two, the focus was on the protection of the nation, not the people, and after, once the death tolls came in, the shock rebounded in people everywhere. With his paintings, Freud brings the attention back to the individual. His exaggeration of flesh colors and the subject’s vivid expressions draws the observer to connect with the subject as though it is a real person – because it is.
Lastly, the residual effects of Freud’s relationship with Francis Bacon can be found in this art piece. Freud loved the way Francis Bacon slathered paint onto the canvas and used colors to express emotions. The ominous coloring of the background behind the white cloth in contrast to the warm-toned colors that make up her body hint to the darker undertones of the painting. Her expression, again, is particularly vivid, similar to Bacon’s Head VI, which is another painting expressing the complicated post-war emotions surrounding the number of deaths.
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