Reflection

Reflection

My painting is a representation of how our civilization is systematically destroying the arctic environment, particularly affecting polar bears. Greenhouse gas emissions produced by factories, power plants, and vehicles all contribute to melting ice caps, and as more ocean is exposed, more heat is absorbed by the earth, creating a vicious and destructive cycle where the polar bear is harmed. Not only does this painting show the city sliding the polar bear off his iceberg, but also implies that if we continue, we too will be submerged by this offset of balance we have created. The city is also obviously poorly built, placing all the weight on one side of the iceberg. The clear solution is to balance the construction of the city, just as we must balance our civilization in the real world to become sustainable. I conveyed all of these ideas with acrylic by setting a stark tone with the red sun, and creating contrast between the city and the rest of nature. Finally, the bear in the center is at our mercy, tiny against the background and fighting for his life against the unbalanced world we have created.