Desires of Mortality is a drawing inspired by the inevitability of artificial intelligence and robotics.  As a society since, the invention of the computation machine has inspired the imagination of people of mechanical beings someday living alongside human beings.  What at one time was science fiction is now becoming a reality in our lifetime.  How human will their perception become will be our perpetual pursuit of the aesthetic ideal.  The morality and ethics of creating a mechanical being will always be controversial when we become convinced that they are more than machines and have sentiments for them.  As people, we begin with good intentions but have a talent for the immoral, depraved, and unethical.  We may be creating a generation of enslaved people.

Within Desires of Mortality, I was inspired by the future of a sentient mechanical being within an impasse of mortality, religion, and “ikigai,” a reason for being.  The portrait was inspired by the likeness and beauty of actress Ruth Elizabeth Davis, popularly known as Bette Davis.  This work is a series of portraits that are accompanied by necklaces that I use to introduce a depth of content and become a focal point for my indulgences for ornamentation.  This necklace overflows with imagery of religion, from sacred hearts, saints, crosses, and Milagro charms.  Milagros or miracles are a type of folk charm that is not as common as it once was but originated in Mexico and extended into the United States along with the Hispanic culture.  These charms are used as religious devices, petitioning for help, hope, and prayers.  They can take almost any form but can be easily recognized with icons of hands, legs, and eyes. 

 

 

Desires of Mortality

32” x 40”

graphite on paper