‘Harry Potter’ Polyptych: Voldemort

Voldemort Polyptych

This quarter at SCAD, I have the absolute pleasure of participating in a Harry Potter class. Yes, a class all about Harry Potter. When I transferred here in January, I already fulfilled all my English classes and electives. My advisor emailed and texted me at least half a dozen times that I do not need to take this class because I don’t need it to graduate, but as a huge Harry Potter nerd, I am SO glad I took it.

For one of my creative projects, I decided to create a polyptych focusing on Tom Riddle, a.k.a. Voldemort. I was introduced to polyptychs during the last winter quarter in my color theory class. Polyptychs are artworks consisting of three or more panels that can be split up and seen as individual pieces, as well as one consistent piece when put together. This art style reminded me of horcruxes and the way that Voldemort split his soul into different pieces, and put-together, they are a consistent piece. I wanted to create a three-panel piece showcasing different parts of his life that led him to be the final and powerful dark wizard that he was at the end.

 The first panel focuses on Riddle when he was a young boy in the orphanage. I included imagery of him and the orphanage. This marked the beginning of his time as a wizard, where he was discovering his magic. When Albus Dumbledore came to visit him at the orphanage and told Riddle he was a wizard, Riddle explained how he can make other students hurt. He says, “I can make things move without touching them. I can make animals do what I want without touching them. I can make bad things happen to people who annoy me. I can make them hurt if I want to,” (Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince). It should have been clear to Dumbledore then that Riddle had malicious tendencies. This was not only the beginning of Riddle realizing he was a wizard; but it was also the beginning of him becoming the Dark Lord. 

Moving into the second panel, I focused on teenage Tom Riddle when he was a student at Hogwarts. I included imagery from the Slytherin dungeons, the chamber of secrets, and the Hogwarts Express. This panel represents both Riddle’s time as a student in the early 1940s as well as his past self through his horcrux during Harry Potter’s second year at Hogwarts. During Riddle’s time as a student, he was constantly learning and growing as a wizard. In these years, he learned about horcruxes which helped him in his reign. During Potter’s second year at Hogwarts, Riddle was still not as powerful as he was at the end. He was still growing into who Voldemort was completely. 

The last panel represents Lord Voldemort. This was when he was at his peak and the most powerful. I included imagery of Nagini and the Battle of Hogwarts. This was the final stage in my polyptych, and the final stage in Voldemort’s growth. Everything up until that point, both in his life and in the artwork, led him to that last panel. 

This has been an idea that’s been in my head for a few months now, and I am so happy to see it fully executed now. I am especially happy that I get to create such fun pieces that I love here at SCAD. If any of you ever get the chance to take a class about Harry Potter, please do it.