Pandora’s Trojan Horse Likes it Hot

The catastrophic forest fires we hear about so often in the news every year, are not solely caused by Climate Change. Like almost anything the situation is nuanced. People are increasingly moving their homes into forested areas, and often not allowing smaller, more controlled fires to burn off the naturally accumulating deadwood on the forest floors. However, there is absolutely no question that years of drought, and record heat waves which are caused by Climate Change, have contributed greatly to the unprecedented catastrophic nature of many of the out of control fires today.
This is the first painting in my ‘Pandora’s Trojan Horse; Exploring issues around Climate Change’, series that depicts, not things that could cause Climate Change, but wildfire art, caused by Climate Change. Here a charging Pandora’s Trojan horse fire completely surrounding it, has no choice but to flee from the fire. Pandora’s Trojan Horse, who in this series is symbolic of power, privilege, and an uncaring attitude, is not spared from the ramifications of Climate Change.
It was the wildfires fires in California, and the fires in Australia, hitting the news with their shocking images night after night, that germinated the seed for this painting. Video clips of Australia’s koalas and Kangaroos, having been caught up as innocent victims of this tragedy, inspired me to create a little kangaroo art, where the kangaroo represents all of the innocent victims of climate change, whether they are human or animal.