Work Text:
EGO DEATH OCCURS WHEN
The sense of self and the broader identity is lost.
There is no longer an I, your nails scratch up every
Photograph and each mirror looks more cloudy
No matter how many times you scrub it. EGO DEATH
Implies that only the self has gone awry,
That the once pristine portrait has folded
Into an ugly mess over time. But that is simply not true,
As the EGO aspect of EGO DEATH is often shaped
By another; a portrait is never made by the model’s
Own hands. The model must look to the artist
And hope that they’re doing it right, so one day,
The model can trade their seat in front of the canvass
To behind it, even if it’s just to watch their own
Identity, EGO, be embedded into permanence.
If the artist leaves, which they do, which they
Promise to do, the portrait can’t be completed.
It’s almost foolish to believe that an artist
Could only stay in one place. And so, EGO DEATH
OCCURS WHEN the sense of self and the broader
Identity is lost, or unfinished, chipped. And when
You’re not told how to pose anymore, you’ll still believe
That what the artist left was good enough;
An unfinished portrait is at least a reminder
Of what you both were destined to be.