Artist Statement

Twelfth Night

The philosopher Rene Descartes' famous quote “I think therefore I am” was in part derived from studying the changing nature of wax as it burned.  He concluded that the senses provide only guidance for the logical mind and could not be entirely trusted.  The characteristics of wax changes as it burns, and without rational thought, our ability to touch, smell and see would leave us proverbially in the dark to the object's truth.  

The reality of death has been intertwined in my family for as long as I can remember.  From hearing my father discuss the mischief he caused at a local wake to the stories from Irish history, death was always present.  There was folklore and magic in these narratives, both familial and shared, that didn't stress the “morbid”, but did ask for reflections on the past.  Once a year, in early January, a culmination ritual relating to this topic took place.  On the eve of the Epiphany, a Christian holy day after Christmas, my family celebrated a candle ceremony called the “Twelfth Night”.

An extensive amount of documentation on this custom does not exist, but its origins can be traced to Western Ireland.  The tradition goes back to pagan days and was assimilated into a connection with  Catholicism.  People of an older generation describe it as being common in certain regions.  It was also one of the rituals that some families, like mine, decided to take with them when they immigrated.  The practice consisted of placing twelve candles on a surface and writing one family member's name on a piece of paper.  Each piece of paper was then placed at the base of one candle.  The candles were lit, a rosary said, and everyone watched the wax burn down.  The first candle of this “Twelfth Night” ritual that extinguished signified who in the family would be the next to die. 

Metaphorically, this custom is the kernel for this body of work.  My time in Ireland has made me consider memory and loss, and realize that everyone emigrates during phases of life.  Like the lit candles, we are all transient.  For some, it is relocating to a new culture, starting a new job, growing old or making lifestyle choices.  Each  decides what to bring forward and what burns away into the past.  For me, the “Twelfth Night”  ritual now seems more like a symbolic remembrance of a previous land and culture, than killing off a relative.

The images in this piece represent my ephemeral candle.  They document both a personal and collective vernacular of Ireland.  They are artifacts that divulge a unique personal dichotomy;  I am most Irish in the United States, and most American abroad.  These objects and places are familiar from my upbringing, but ultimately foreign through my viewfinder.  Like Descartes, I can visualize them with my senses but ultimately don't truly know them with my rational mind.  

Finally, I ask each viewer to be a participant in this exhibition.  Write your own statement on the paper and place it at a candle.  A memory, a lost love, a country, youth.  It is up to you.  While it will always be a part of you, it resides in the past.  Symbolically, like the burning candle, in time it will slowly burn away.

Image Two