As a school teacher who spends quality time in closets practicing dying or being a “hero”, the Uvalde shooting was the final catalyst to create a work that is a visceral reaction to the epidemic gun violence in the country, of school shootings and the shallow offering of “thoughts & prayers”. This work reflects the socio-political tragic dilemma that exists with gun ownership in America. While my work is not always directly connected to particular socio-political issues, this work represents a not so subtle primal wailing with regards to the atrocities that go on in mass shootings throughout the country. Although I am not religious, this work references Michelangelo's Pieta in that Mary’s loss of Jesus may evoke an understanding of our universal loss every time we encounter these tragedies. It is a shrine to the gun owners, a shrine to the loss of life that needs to be visceral. The act of destroying children's toys was difficult, the toys represent the loss of a loved thing, both the children themselves and the things they love.

SERENA BUSCHI

SERENA BUSCHI