Why would you work so hard for something only to destroy it?
As an artist, I enjoy my work the most when I am exploring new things. This piece, “Self Portrait Five,” was my first performance piece. Prior to the performance, the work consisted of a jar with interconnected figures around the base as well as a full value 18×24 portrait. For the performance, I crumpled the portrait as small as it could go, crammed it into the jar and lit it on fire. While it slowly and silently burned, my audience had time to reflect upon the message of the work.
This piece explores human capacity for emotion. The dynamism and color range reflects the diverse feelings that can move through an individual at any one moment. (Often overlapping or even with disparity between internal truth and external indications.) The performance explores the idea of commitment and what happens when a person lets go of something he/she has worked towards.
Even once destroyed, the ashes still remain.
Ouch… man, I would have a hard time doing that. Still, your point does have a lot of interest and meaning. Very nice, Tyler.
Ryan, your accolades should go to Alysha. She posted this article. I am not that artistic!