Kiera Wax

Mohegan Lake, NY

Artist Statement

Nature and anatomy have always interested me, as well as the relationship between nature and death, so I worked to highlight the fact that death is a cyclic part of nature that should be respected rather than feared. The blurred dichotomy of life and death challenges us to examine our connection to nature, new beginnings, and ultimate departure from existence. As a biology major, I worked to portray the anatomical skeleton with as much observation and attention to detail as possible. I also incorporated cultural symbols, including the grim reaper and his scythe, the monarch butterfly representing the returning souls of ancestors in celebration of the Mexican holiday Día de los Muertos, and ancient Greek Gods, to act as symbols of different perspectives on death. I am an avid reader of Greek mythology, and my largest painting, Ancient Tales, includes representations of major Greek Gods, the entrance to the underworld with its keeper Cerberus, life, death, and fertility. Working with the concept of death in my work this year created a balanced thread between an interest in physical anatomy and the common and cyclical themes of death and tragedy in Greek mythology. Finally, my first painting, From Within, is most personal to me, as it contains a depiction of a waterfall close to home, and deer skulls which act as a nod to my biology thesis on deer activity in the Glen on campus.