Without You 2021

Without You 2020

mixed media, video, 

140 x 80 x 80 cm

 

Not letting go of the past can weigh a person down. Holding onto things gone by can become emotional baggage and inevitably block one’s path. Inspired by Empire of The Sun’s ‘Without you’, I explore the darker meaning behind the love song that speaks of the pain and loneliness of missing a person. I wanted to show a non-romanticised vision of this feeling; that the constant longing and reminiscing for a person or event can become burdensome, that nostalgia is a lie behind rose-tinted glasses. The being that I have created reflects this weight as a figure. The installation consists of multiple belongings of mine both old and new piled up against a closed door. Footage plays from multiple screens on old cell phones and my oldest camcorder placed at the top of the structure. This creature that sits blocking the exit of the room is anthropomorphic but also clinical. It is a reflection of oneself; displaying cherished moments that have passed as an illusion, whilst preventing one from seeing beyond it. The past and the lives we have lived will forever be held dear to us, however, we must take caution to not be blinded by it.