Continued. . .

But this painting also makes us consider our cannibalistic impulses, the cruel way we treat others. Saturn Devouring His Young turns the tables on the conversation. We think of, "Eat the Rich," a popular slogan in the 1960's social justice movement. Or the biblical, "Do unto others. . ." My intention, ultimately with this and other works of this nature, is for us to consider the simple precept that all people are deserving of respect, without regard to their place on the economic spectrum. It is a persistent American phenomenon that people who struggle for money are somehow less deserving of common decency than those who don't struggle. But really, people are people; everyone deserves to be treated with dignity, especially the "least of these." As the good book says, and as dramatically depicted here, "The first shall be last."

These works are also an extension of The Quench Project, as they deal with how humans manifest their desires and needs.

Saturn Devouring His Young was also inspired by my recent trip to LA, where not less than fifty feet from this Rolls Royce, a man was digging through a trash container for something, anything, that might provide a hand up. Aren't we all in a way, digging through something: bigger bank accounts, better jobs, Amazon Prime, dating sites, all of which being the results of other people's product and effort. Even this painting is, in a sense, the leftover, the refuse of my creative effort. The one thing we all share in common is the hope of finding something, anything, that will help us create a better life.

"According to Roman myth (inspired by the original Greek myth), it had been foretold that one of the sons of Saturn would overthrow him, just as he had overthrown his father, Caelus. To prevent this, Saturn ate his children moments after each was born."