2013: Ancient Gods and Contemporary Circumstances | body of work

Artist Statement:  I have been captivated by Greek mythology since I first learned about it in my adolescence. I was drawn to the very human characteristics, vices, and faults of these powerful gods and goddesses. With Greek mythology, the existence of the enigmatic deities fulfilled the same role as gods have across cultures throughout human existence, explaining aspects of life and death, the reason for life itself and circumstances. This reminds us that throughout history, mankind has searched for some semblance of reason and order relevant to their infinitely chaotic world. In this aspect, are we, as contemporary humans, any different?  Haven’t each of us searched both internally and externally for a deeper explanation—a reason for our own lives?  Doesn’t everyone find himself or herself attempting to gain a comfortable form of understanding of our roles in our culture, society and even in our own bodies?

This body of work evolved in my mind as a combination of our current cultural, societal, political, economic and global circumstances examined through the context of ancient Greek deities. I am by most means an incredibly ordinary, average, American, white woman.   My life perspective is inevitably an influence on my work, yet, in the same way these circumstances don’t define me as a human, they are not the defining feature of my imagery—merely a context worth consideration. In the grand scheme of life, I am more than acutely aware I hold little power or influence in this world around me.  Thus I am essentially one of millions of human pawns persuaded (or manipulated) by those with unfathomably more political, financial, and intellectual resources at their disposal. In turn, this causes the additional consideration of how some human beings seem to have risen to an almost godly state, far beyond the sphere of influence of us simple mortals.

To see how each piece developed from idea sketches to finished works, click here.