Shining DESPAIR
Sara Shahak
Israel

Necklace “Depth of gilded agony”, 2023-2024
Iron, Brass, Cotton waxed thread, pigments, 430x190x35mm
Cutting, Sawing, soldering, painting, threading
Photo : Shlomi Bernthal

« Flowers are weak creatures, naive. They reassure themselves as best they can. They believe their thorns are terrible weapons. » — The Little Prince

Can beauty or light emerge from brokenness and anguish? Moments of despair may offer only fleeting glimpses of hope, reflecting the fragility of the human experience.

I designed a large chain of iron thorn-like flowers. Their forms are sharp, rigid, and menacing, with textures that evoke feelings of pain, danger, and discomfort. Yet, at the tips of the thorns, I applied golden pigments, representing light, sparkle, and value—a radiance born from the sharpness of suffering.
The golden accents create a tension between beauty and suffering, as the gilded thorn tips embody resilience, while still can emphasize a balance between anguish and grace.

They suggest an optimistic notion that beauty and hope can sometimes emerge even from the sharpest edges of despair.

Or is it just a “gilded” hope?

This duality of fragility and strength, darkness and radiance, silence and expression, lies at the core of the work.

More « Shining DESPAIR »

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Shining Despair – Elvira Cibotti / Argentina

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Shining Despair – Myriam Theveniaud / France

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Shining Despair – Susan Buchanan / Australia

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My work reveals inner conflict and suffering by contrasting societal expectations with the personal turmoil I often experience.

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Shining Despair – Sunyoung Cheong / USA

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