Why?

This searing, high-contrast collage serves as a raw existential question and a visual protest against systemic violence, war, and the devastating impact of human aggression. Originally conceptualized in the devastating aftermath of Kirk’s murder, the work evolved into a broader reflection on the collective trauma inflicted by ongoing global conflicts and state-sanctioned brutality. The frantic, visceral red pastel markings evoke blood, pain, and collective grief, which are abruptly and violently masked by heavy, oppressive blocks of black paint—symbolizing erasure, censorship, and the crushing weight of power. The torn, fragmented edges of the paper and the faint, haunting handwritten question underneath demand an answer from a fractured world, capturing the profound psychological toll of living in an era of relentless hostility.