"THE LAMENT OF FIRE"
Final Major Project
Artist Statement:
This work, entitled “The Lament of Fire,” is an exploration of the profound and complicated feeling of loss, and the beauty within it, despite the agony and grief it brings.
Fire laments for what it is destroying. It cries, it wails, and it grieves as it takes what used to be something, transforms it into a fiery scream, and then into nothing. What is being depicted in my work is the cusp; the moment of realization that something loved is soon to be lost, but for right now, it is still here. At that moment, what is being lost is loved so much more fervently knowing that it will soon be ashes.
The subject of this piece is a barn on fire. From the bottom up, small, pixelated abstractions take over the piece and render the barn almost unrecognizable. This pixelation creeping from the bottom of the painting represents the slow loss of something loved; and while it is still there now, it is painfully clear its disappearance is inevitable.
My biggest influence for the concept behind this work is the contemporary artist Cai Guo-Qiang. The unique mark this artist leaves on the world is explosive, expressive, and fleeting; his art is in the form of fireworks. Guo-Qiang creates grand displays of explosives which derive from his Chinese heritage and are inspired by his own history surviving the painful era of the Chinese Communist Revolution. He, his family, and his country experienced great loss as they were forced to destroy any symbols of their culture under the new regime. Guo-Qiang’s work is inspired by this profound suffering and loss, leading to artwork that is emotional, awe-inspiring, and spectacular. For the stylistic elements in my work, my influence comes from the American painter Chuck Close, who paints photorealistic portraits made up of small abstractions, as well as the painters Gustav Klimt and Mary Pratt.
Artist Mentors:
Major Project Revamping:
The original design was to be painted on one of the walls in a stairwell at Canterbury High School. Unfortunately, due to the circumstances, the wall was not able to be brought home and the piece could not be finished on it. However, this dilema allowed for some rethinking and replanning of this piece. I chose to complete The Lament of Fire on a canvas using oil paint; a medium that I have little experience in and would challenge me. It took roughly 30 hours over the course of a couple weeks to complete.
The Lament of Fire, 2020
Acrylic/Oil on Canvas
20"x20"
