The Truth About Reality by David Christiaan
The Idea for this artwork came to me in two stages. Whilst I was laying in bath, I saw in my mind three overlapping mirrors. This image ignited my curiosity but that alone didn’t feel complete. I don’t remember exactly how the second part of the idea came to me but I was laying in bath again. This time the thought of arrows with black and white feathers shot in overlapping gold frames with silver surfaces came to my mind. This idea was very exiting for me because I could see the symbolic, mythological and metaphorical references in it. When I was making the actual artwork and thinking about it I was feeling very inspired. “This work needs to exist”. For me, the whole process of receiving the idea, making it (in secret) and then finally exposing friends and family to it for the first time, was a very satisfying experience.
“I’ve noticed that when most people first encounter this artwork they need some time to process what they are looking at. Although the individual objects and materials are recognisable you don’t immediately realise what you are seeing or where in the work to focus your attention. The relative visual complexity of this piece is a metaphor for the complexity of reality and truth. Hence the title of the subject. Since everyone has an individual experience when they view the work, the subject matter, which is clearly about perception, and the experience of the viewer actually become one. In this way the viewers experience becomes part of the artwork itself. I have found that without actually informing people about what I think this artwork means, it inspires thought and conversation regarding what our experience of reality actually is.”
