Gracen Steinepreis

Final Piece: Living on the edge

Mortal Sin.

“ The Lord God made garments of skin for Adam and his wife and clothed them. And the Lord God said, “The man has now become like one of us, knowing good and evil. He must not be allowed to reach out his hand and take also from the tree of life and eat, and live forever.” Genesis 3:21

The darkness that consumes the human body, reminds us of our destiny with death.
Tattooed with the image of sin, and the rooted tree that reminds us of the day we were condemned by God.
The withered flowers are a symbol of the dying that lye at the mercy of the cross. The cross that embody’s the betrayal of man.
The black raven, a symbol of death. These are birds that observe, as if lurking and waiting for their next victim. Through the process of reverse appliqué, the carving away to form the figure, a metaphor for the wearing of life .
Symbols of the circle of life are both found in the platted rings that lies at the foot of the crucifix and the fallen crescent moons that link to the tail of the raven, a symbol of the moons cycle, birth, life and death.
Darkness and death consumes all that lives. The blackness of the foreground contrasts the natural tones of the skin. Reminding us of the end.

I was inspired by the work of sylvia Ji and Frida Kahlo, through the symbolic use of objects to personify meaning and purpose, And the embellished style of Givenchy’s  fall winter 2010 collection.