This collection depicts our internal struggle with determining whether our thoughts are authored by ourselves or others, claiming ownership of them or rejecting them and how that shapes who we are and what we are capable of. We are constantly bombarded with input from the external world which shapes our perceptions of ourselves if we let it. We are bound to suffer unless we can separate ourselves from the thoughts that fill our heads and achieve a more accurate awareness of the world outside of those distractions.
Work available
◈ Acknowledge and Let Go ◈
We are not our thoughts, though we dwell in them, holding on to each as if it were a piece of us, letting it shape our reality regardless of whether we were even it's origin.
To see ourselves as we are, thoughts should be treated as strangers: observe their presence, do not engage, and let them pass until our awareness is only of their absence.
◈ The Gift of My Chaos ◈
They say that artists must suffer to create their art. My incapability to control the chaos of my life is the cause of my suffering. Art is the gift I receive in return for enduring it. Will you accept this regifting?
◈ The Shield of My Drama ◈
"It is a tale told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, signifying nothing."
William Shakespeare, Macbeth
◈ The Stories I Tell Myself ◈
There is who I am and who I believe myself to be and who you believe me to be and who I believe you believe me to be. These people are never the same person, no matter what narratives I weave to bind them.
◈ I Will Never Be Bored ◈
I get tired. Sometimes I just want to have nothing to do. Why is there never an end to the list of things that need doing for survival or an obligation to others? When can I just stop? Boredom seems like a lost paradise sometimes.
◈ All Aspects Are a Spectrum ◈
It would be easier if everything was in neat quantifications and measurable so that we can base our identities, relationships, politics and culture on our unique combination of properties. But nothing is easy. Defining boundaries brings labels and labels bring tribalism and tribalism causes more discord than accepting that we all have the spectrums themselves in common even if we are each in different places on them.
Each of these pieces is a 1/1 by Maneki Neko.
They were created in several stages starting with an abstract piece created with the AI algorithm ruDalle and used as an image prompt in Midjourney AI that began a series of chained remixed variations to cultivate the concept. The best of these results were curated and experimented with in the Magnific tool to upscale and refine details and then edited for color and fine details in Photoshop. Finally, the result was upscaled in Topaz Gigapixel to 8k resolution.
They were created in several stages starting with an abstract piece created with the AI algorithm ruDalle and used as an image prompt in Midjourney AI that began a series of chained remixed variations to cultivate the concept. The best of these results were curated and experimented with in the Magnific tool to upscale and refine details and then edited for color and fine details in Photoshop. Finally, the result was upscaled in Topaz Gigapixel to 8k resolution.
Digital image, 6026x8000 px
Year Minted: 2024