Consumption

The main focus of all my work is the idea of change and transformation, particularly how it relates to the human condition. That focus has led me to think about consumption as a necessary activity that directly relates to, and is a primary factor of, change and transformation. Meaning that consumption, on many different levels, is an instinctual activity that all things participate in to survive and, by doing so, is itself a process of change and transformation.

As such Consumption is a prime example of that focus. In it I explore the primary theme of consumption in different ways. The first and most dramatic is the use of fire. Fire, which is a basic and universal element, becomes a destroyer as well as a purifier. It functions as a destroyer in that it consumes the flesh of the figure, while at the same time purifying the figure of its excessive consumption.

Surrounded by the fire, and seemingly immune to it, is the wheel of life. Entangling the wheel are the ornate filigreed tendrils of the eye of God. The wheel and the eye of God symbolize how the spiritual is separate from, but still omnipresent in, life and the world.

Less dramatic than fire, but also an example of the theme of consumption, is air. It is another basic and universal element that in this case represents consumption by how it feeds and gives life to fire. It also serves as a space for everything, like the flock of crows, to exist. The crows fly and flutter about losing feathers in their frantic efforts to, not only avoid being consumed by the flames, but also by fulfilling their role of consuming predator.

Rising from the bottom of Consumption are twelve arms and hands that hold up the massive figure. The purpose of their action is not clear, nor is the general question of what is taking place in the entire scene. In doing so I present the viewer with a seemingly unsolvable mystery - one that allows the viewer to ponder and come to his or her own conclusions. That said, thinking in terms of the theme of consumption, one may ask - what motive could the crowd of people have to do this? The question is yours to answer.

- Brian Mains, October 2020