Mourning Glory. Oil on Panel. 20"x16" February 2018.
Mourning Glory. Oil on Panel. 20"x16" February 2018.
Mourning Glory explores the paralysis that can come from indecision. The moment when the possibility of another reality becomes so consuming that we become unable to fully inhabit the one we are living.
At the center of the painting stands a solitary figure, rendered like an ancient Greek statue. Frozen in both form and time, the figure appears suspended between action and inaction, surrounded by water yet unable to move forward. Behind them is a desolate desert mountain landscape, a place that feels both ancient and otherworldly. The figure’s classical appearance suggests permanence and idealized beauty, while their isolation speaks to the emotional weight of becoming disconnected from one’s own life.
Throughout the composition, triangular forms act as windows or glimpses into an alternate reality. A series of possible lives, choices, and paths existing just beyond reach. These fragments represent the possibilities the figure can see but consciously chooses to ignore. They are reminders of what could exist, but also of the cost of refusing to act. By turning away from these alternate realities, the figure becomes trapped not by circumstance, but by their own hesitation.
Flowers emerge from the surrounding landscape and water, introducing moments of color, growth, and life into an otherwise barren world. They can be read as an attempt to revive an existence that the central figure has emotionally removed themselves from. At the same time, the flowers function as mourners. They bloom around the figure as though grieving for the life that might have been. The relationships, experiences, and possibilities left unrealized.
The title Mourning Glory reflects this contradiction: mourning what has been lost while still being surrounded by the possibility of growth. The work considers how the fear of making the wrong choice can itself become a choice, and how endlessly imagining another reality can prevent us from participating in our own. Ultimately, the painting represents regret, self-imposed isolation, and the quiet grief of potential that exists just beyond our reach.