Gommage

This piece is inspired by the amazing new video game, Clair Obscur: Expedition 33. I am not a traditional “gamer” in the sense, but I am drawn to more artistic gaming titles with compelling storytelling. I was immediately in awe of this world when I first loaded it up. The game is from a small French game developer and you quickly realize how artfully and intentionally it came to be. In the first hour of the game, you learn very painfully that there is a “gommage” every year, where the townspeople turning a certain age, are erased… turning into flower petals and drifting away… Then you are sent on an exhibition and have a year to try to stop it from happening again. There are wooden “gesturals” that help you along your journey, just as gestural models help an artist. One of the main characters is even named Renoir, my favorite painter. I got to a point where I was dreaming about this game. I wasn’t playing it, I was living it. The connections came… how artists use their work for emotional release or to capture a moment to remember. They put their very being into their creations. These developers, these artists, certainly did. This piece I have made is my homage to Clair Obscur and how deeply it touched my soul as an artist.