Urns

2007

As the old joke goes: the only difference between an Irish funeral and an Irish wedding is one less person. A momentous event such as an Irish funeral (in my family at least), is comprised of deep despair and poignant reflection but is most notable for the cacophonous laughter and imbibing that ensues. This tradition helps to create a bridge between the comfort of humor and the overwhelming feeling of loss.

This idea is what inspired this series. While exploring the forms of Grecian Amphora, I was reminded of funerary urns. Having recently dealt with loss, this subject weighed heavy on my mind. The months following a tragic summer, I relied on the comfort of the people around me. While joking around with friends, I began to relate the subjects we would discuss (relevant to our generation and the pop culture of the time) to the funeral urn forms I was interested in. The Urns became a vehicle to “put to rest” the concept they depicted. Since the concepts I chose were inspired by casual conversation and discussions with friends, the aesthetics I used were relevant to the pop culture of our time. Using imagery inspired by urban Hip Hop lifestyle, the Biggie Tupac Urn is an attempt to put to rest the ongoing East Coast/West Coast rivalry of the 1990’s, The Scrunchie Urn is meant to put to rest trends and aesthetics of a decade past that had gone out of style, the Camo Urn -inspired by George W. Bush’s frustrating reign- is a message to put an end to the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, the Deer Hunter urn puts an end to sport hunting.