my heart laid bare

the first painting of my thematic work!

thematic work--
Transcendence:

Noun

1. A state of being or existence above and beyond the limits of

material experience

2. The state of excelling or surpassing or going beyond usual limits

Through my work this year I wanted to explore the concept of transcendence and its emotional properties through a series of paintings with a sense of narrative. Their connections and subject matters would be ethereal and metaphorical, referencing to the naked eye concepts often seen in Ovid's metamorphosis, or as the common person would know-Greek mythology. I feel that in his prose, the subjects or deities go through horrible experiences that transform them into other beings, and in the end they transcend their situations to become birds, plants, or to merge like Dionysus and Apollo; creating one being altogether.

I wanted to convey my own thoughts and feelings on transcendence through these pieces and I feel that they are deeply personal in that regard. I chose to create these surreal portraits because I feel that they are representations of my own feelings and reactions to the world around me.

What is transcendence exactly? In Aristotle's philosophy and original use of the term, it is the concept of overcoming/going beyond the material experience. In my eyes it is the concept of overcoming one's surroundings and reaching another state of being, evolving or as some would say transforming.

Rimbaud said it best in Une Saison En Enfer- I is another.

And in that I find hope.