Survivors
Helena, Montana
2024
Seeing these sculptures immediately brought to mind the work of Alberto Giacometti, and taken together with their placement on top of this massive pile of broken bricks, tile, and other rubble sadly evoked the news stories and images of the famine and destruction occurring in Gaza of late.
The figures brought the concentration camps of WWII to my mind, but your association is also poignant. 🙁
Both references seem appropriate, and according to one account, “his works embodied post-war disillusionment and collective trauma.” While for Giacometti, that meant WWII, it could certainly apply to the current conflict in Gaza as well.
First thought, good idea to represent this concept of survivors crawling out of devastation on a huge pile of debris that probably won’t be cleaned up anytime soon, anyway. Making art out of materials at hand. Second thought, an image that can be probably represent the hundreds of cases of complete destruction caused naturally or by humans going back millenniums. Sometimes the sites are abandoned and sometimes they are built back upon.
The artist made good use of that pile of cast off building material to enhance the effect of their sculptures, at least if either of those interpretations you mention are applicable to their intent.