Self Sacrifice by Melissa Leslie (2013)

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Description 'Self Sacrifice' is my first piece using a Filipino features for the subject. If you follow my work you will see that my pieces feature women of all ethnic backgrounds as I have roots from all over the world. 'Self Sacrifice' is a small window into my world as all the pieces from the series 'Heaven, Earth and the In-Betweens' do. These women represent the stages and obstacles I have experienced and been tested in. This particular work is based on Matthew 16:24 'Then Jesus said to his disciples, 'Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me.' The woman is full of life yet set apart from the world represented by the skull. The skull represents sacrificing her fleshly desires to live a life for others. In doing so she releases the bondage of regret, shame and guilt. Her hair flowing from underneath the skull represents her liberty to live a life of honesty through baptism also represented in the water droplets. The lilies in full bloom below represent many things in different cultures but here they portray purity, modesty and a resurrection to a new life in Christ. The upside down symbol of the cross represents a sacrifice of the followers of Christ. Peter is said to have been crucified under Emperor Nero Augustus Caesar. It is traditionally held that he was crucified upside down at his own request, since he saw himself unworthy to be crucified in the same way as Jesus Christ. The two faces on the left and right in the back represent the senses that are left to only sacred purposes. The eyes appear blind as they do not see what once led them astray and the desires to do wrong have been sanctified.

Melissa Leslie, Los Angeles
Member Since June 2013
Artist Statement http://instagram.com/mlovestudio