Ryan Boyd

Pandora was conceived by Hephaestus, the god of fire, who breathed her into existence. Hermes, the messenger of the gods, gave her language and named her Pandora. Aphrodite, the goddess of love and beauty, gave her the ability to feel deep emotions. Athena, the goddess of war, gave her the gift of creativity. Zeus, the god of thunder and the leader of the pantheon, gave her curiosity and a large box that she was never allowed to open. One day she became so curious about what was inside that she decided to open it. What Zeus had hidden in the box was all the evil creatures in the world, which she let loose upon the world by opening her box. After all the monsters had left the box, a ray of light shone from it, bestowing hope upon the world in the wake of chaos. The intention of this sculpture is to embody the myth of Pandora's Box in a way that explores mystery, secrets revealed, and hope in the wake of destruction. The figure of Pandora is blindfolded to represent her ignorance of what is inside the box. Surrounding her are floating, rotating shards of glass, representing the idea that what is done cannot be undone. As these shards of glass rotate, unseen aspects of the piece become visible. Through the glass, the viewer is able to see that the box is glowing with an esoteric pattern- representing its mysterious power, and how it still contains hope. "