Jack Vettriano 'The Innocents'

[xanderma]

This picture shows a young couple on a bench outside a cafe-type building. She has her head on his shoulder, his arm is around her. There is a sinister-looking man in the shadows looking through the window behind them, and another man faces him as seen through the window in the cafe door.

Anyone know what it's all about? It's fair spooked me, I've only just noticed the two men!

[heathfield]

Jack Vettriano unashamedly works from photographs he takes. Maybe the two men were simply wondering why some idiot was taking a photo of the front of their place.

[jno]

I don't think that's entirely right, heathfield: he uses photos as a basis, but like any other artist he paints what he wants; he can put people in or leave them out; and I would certainly imagine he posed these men. Anyway, they could be envious older people ogling young lovers, they could be spies or policemen or something sent to break up their relationship for whatever reason, or they could just be random bystanders excluded from the couple's happiness. The title suggests that the couple are at some sort of disadvantage because they are too innocent to know of the other men's presence; but beyond that your guess is as good as mine.