Or Not to Be
Charcoal and pastel on gessoed paper, 15”x22”
“To be, or not to be, that is the question.” —William Shakespeare, Hamlet. The drawing Or Not to Be explores the lack of understanding that a young man has about mortality upon examining an elephant skull.
We are all born with an expiration date. We expire. Hopefully after truly living. Hopefully after truly loving. Hopefully after experiencing the deepest bonds of friendship and belonging. We expire. Pursuing your passion requires incredible amounts of courage, determination, and focus. The conviction required to work beyond the constant distractions of life—food and lodging, responsibilities, dependents, and myriad other interests is nothing to simply disregard. I’m often contemplating the levity that talent and fame play in our lives. The celebrity role of actors, actresses, sports figures, fashion icons, authors, artists, dancers, media personalities, and even social media influencers in how we compare our lives to others is something we can’t escape even if we pretend to ignore it. These days even infamous grifters and murderers are being romanticized via Netflix documentaries.
Why are we here? What are we doing?
Seeing elephants on the verge of extinction should make everyone stop and think about what is essential in our lives. They’ve been on this earth much longer than we have, but they will no longer exist because of our greed and desire to compete for money, fame, and for what? To prove our life mattered? To show that we had an impact?
