Temptation

This artwork addresses the eternal conflict between desire and chastity, portraying desire as sinful and a human inclination to temptation, power, and illusion. The smooth black snake - a traditional emblem of seduction and deceit - awashes a bright red apple, disturbing knowledge and animalistic desire. Its surrounding red rose petals evoke romance, enthusiasm, and fleeting moments of pleasure. Then, in the middle of the composition, rests a single white feather, representing purity and restraint and the morality of chastity. Each aspect of this genre brings forward a duality between indulgence and innocence. The snake's cold and glossy skin portrays the seduction of the unwanted. In contrast, the feather, elegant and defenseless, confronts the quiet inner battle of giving in, allowing desire free reign, and exercising self-control to tame that desire. In this work, lust is not condemned but analyzed as something which both blemishes and creates identity. The viewer is encouraged to reconcile their duality and discourse about what seduces them while prompting how they feel as if they might be redeemed.