-INSPIRATION-
We are often told that the possibilities are endless, you can achieve anything if you work hard enough. In an attempt to reach for the stars, we ambitiously push ourselves. This painting depicts a darker side to that unbridled ambition. Where in an attempt to push ourselves, we reach a breaking point.
The background of the painting is painted in warm tones as these colours are often associated with a passion for life, to do better, which is what ambition stems from. The warm colours then merge into a deeper black, which is indicative of despair that often comes with constantly sacrificing today for a better future.
There is a face caged in this despair wanting to get out, the face is sketched in gray to represent the numbness that often comes with leading an unhappy life. Lastly, the cage is in the form of a brain because the need to achieve and constantly do better is often a construct of our own psyche.