PARADISO ET INFERNUS (PARADISE AND HELL)

Statement

Translated from Latin as Paradise and Hell, Paradiso et Infernus is my exploration of the common themes of good and evil in western, middle eastern, African, and Mediterranean cultures. This series of paintings is inspired by Proto-Renaissance, Renaissance, and Baroque imagery, and explores the dichotomy, and sometimes ambiguity, of good and evil. This is primarily through Judeo-Christian imagery and the most traditional concepts of Heaven and Hell. The series will eventually include elements from works such as Paradise Lost, Inferno, and the Screwtape Letters. 

Paradiso et Infernus is the war between Heaven and Hell and the eternal conflict between these regions just outside of our reality. The series explores violence, revenge, murder, and sin, and the ambiguity of these concepts depending upon affiliation and perspective. Illustrations will reflect diverse cultures and regions that have heavily influenced the development of Judeo-Christian imagery. However, this is not a series meant to express a political or religious viewpoint, but a body of work exploring how violence is characterized by context. 

I prefer to use highly contrasting subjects to convey the message; there is no ambiguity about angels and demons. These are icons by which many western audiences judge good and evil. Viewers will assume actions taken by either to be a particular viewpoint or moral stance, but what I am challenging the viewer to consider is what causes the morality of a single action to change? When does revenge turn to justice? Does this depend on group identity? Can good commit revenge, or will revenge always be interpreted as justice when performed by good? At what point does action lose the moniker of good regardless of who performs the action? 

My intent is for the finished series to tell one narrative, but I am not serializing the body of work. Again, the production of each painting will not be in chronological order, rather I wish for each piece to slowly reveal distinct parts of the story. I want the narrative to change for the viewer, and to steadily become clearer as each new piece is added over time. 

All images are painted using traditional painting techniques in a digital format. 

No artificial intelligence was used in the creation of the work.