James Surls, The Splendora Years

"Other works highlight darker impulses, among them jealousy, aggression, and the will to power or self destruction. In a recent interview, Surls described the stimulus for his 1982 Me and the Butcher Knives thus: 'It’s about self inflicted pain; who is the worst enemy out there? It inevitably boils down to you. You are the enemy, and you are the one who has to work out things. Your are the one who has to take the psychological journeys. You are the one who has to ask the questions about yourself, and you are the one who has to give yourself answers.' In this work a slender vulnerable figure is pierced through with knives and covered with black scorch marks.

-Eleanor Heartney, from Splendora: A Love Story in the publication "James Surls: The Splendora Years, 1977-1997."


	Me and the Butcher Knives 1982 Oak and mahogany 101 x 37 x 39 in 256.5 x 94 x 99.1 cm Collection Whitney Museum of American Art, New York "Other works highlight darker impulses, among them jealousy, aggression, and the will to power or self destruction. In a recent interview, Surls described the stimulus for his 1982 Me and the Butcher Knives thus: 'It’s about self inflicted pain; who is the worst enemy out there? It inevitably boils down to you. You are the enemy, and you are the one who has to work out things. Your are the one who has to take the psychological journeys. You are the one who has to ask the questions about yourself, and you are the one who has to give yourself answers.' In this work a slender vulnerable figure is pierced through with knives and covered with black scorch marks. -Eleanor Heartney, from Splendora: A Love Story in the publication "James Surls: The Splendora Years, 1977-1997."