＿＿＿“Tales of fire”

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The word fire carries many meanings, simultaneously symbolizing hope, a metaphor for truth, and civilization, as well as weaponry, disaster and retribution.

 

Beginning with the Greek story of Prometheus, ‘the birth of fire’ has served as a basis for myth in cultures around the world. Most of them describe fire as being stolen from the gods or animals. This evokes the way that humans have long looked on fire as something beyond their control, inspiring both fear and awe.

 

How should we, who inherit the legacy of these myths passed down for centuries, deal with fire today? I believe this is an issue which we will soon have to consider. In doing so, we must embody the spirit of Prometheus (the fore-thinker), rather than Epimetheus (the after-thinker).

 

To encourage such a reexamination, this painting depicts a young girl who serves a yorishiro (physical embodiment of a god or spirit) for fire. The girl has carried the flame throughout the ages, and one wonders where she could be leading us to. I also wonder what sort of world her flame will create or what it shall reveal.

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