Memento
Materials: air dry clay, red and green nailpolish
Dimensions: 1.5'' x 2.5'' x 1''
Process photos for Heavy Lifting
Sketch for Heavy Lifting
Lenka Clayton, Box Containing 352 Things.
Aaron S. Moran, if you resist this!
Ever since I was 11, I wanted to be an artist. I continually changed my mind on exactly what I wanted to do (painter, art teacher, comic illustrator), but I knew that I wanted to be surrounded by art. Although, I constantly struggled with a lack of motivation caused by mental illness that has affected my life since my very early years. So, when I took two art classes this semester, I was hit the the realization that art was not for me.
I could not overcome the overwhelming pressure that was caused by my parents that prevented me from improving because I viewed art as a competition, not a craft. I was extremely unhappy and felt heavy.
My math professor convinced me to go into math, as I was excelling and I have felt a strong love for math since I was 13. One thing happened after another, and I became convinced that I would never reach my new dream of being a mathematician and I would be stuck forever in an unhappy state of being. I once again felt heavy.
The memento commemorates that moment of dread where my insecurities finally reached me and told me that I would never be happy. It shows a drooping object with the top part drooping and spilling over the bottom part, which was already heavy. The pain was stacking on top of the previous pain to only emphasize itself.
The thin "stem" that curls is to show how I was not sturdy enough to carry that pain; the "stem" should not be able to support that weight. The weight puts a lot of stress on that "stem" just for it to one day break, but for now, it has not broken.
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