- My chosen artwork, Personas, is not only breathtaking, but it also has a hidden meaning. The piece was created by a sculptor named George Segal and is of Abraham committing an act of sacrifice by killing his one and only son. It is supposed to represent Abraham’s faith and obedience to God. The sculpture is a perfect memesis of the moment when Abraham was about to murder his son with a blade. The son is kneeling down with his hands tied and ready to be taken by his father. In addition to the sculpture, there is also a painting illustrating the same exact moment. The details and facial expressions aren’t quite as accurate and deep as the sculpture, yet it represents the same thing. The lack of details and expression actually makes the killing seem more vulgar when compared to the sculpture. Overall, the combination of these two artworks played nicely together and I really like the way they interacted with each other by demonstrating the same event, yet in two phenomenally different ways.
- Personas also has very deep political implications. The sculpture was created as a result of the Kent State University Shooting in 1970. In the shooting, the Ohio National Guard killed four and injured nine because of a mass protest against the Vietnam War. The United States government claimed the attack was unjustified which lead to more demonstrations across the country. Then, in 1978, George Segal was commissioned to make a memorial of the event. He decided that the Abraham sacrifice would be a perfect memorial for the tragic event. Both the shooting and the killing represented unwarranted death at the hands of the innocent. I believe it’s message shows that although these people were clearly innocent, life isn’t fair, and they had to move on from the tragedy.
- There is a clear relationship between the 2 prior answers as well as a hidden relationship. The actual sculpture represents a sacrificial killing to demonstrate obedience. Similarly, the shooting illustrates death for no physical or tangible reason. Both the shooting and the sacrifice could have been avoided but the people chose to kill. This is a clear relationship. However, there is also another hidden one. Whether it be to respect God, to establish military dominance, or any other reason, any person who ends another’s life will always remember what they did, and must live with the internal consequences of their actions.
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