53 × 55 × 17 cm (H × W × D)
2026, Unglazed stoneware ceramic and gold leaf
Labour IV – The Erymanthian Boar and the Death of Chiron
from the series Myths of Encounter
This vessel depicts the fourth Labour of Heracles: the capture of the Erymanthian Boar, a fearsome creature that terrorised the mountains of Arcadia. Rather than killing the animal, Heracles pursued it through deep snow, where it became trapped and could be captured alive.
The work also references the death of Chiron, the wise centaur, healer and teacher of heroes. During a gathering of centaurs, a dispute erupted after wine was opened, leading to violence and chaos. In the confusion, Chiron was accidentally wounded by one of Heracles’ poisoned arrows. Though immortal, the injury caused unbearable suffering and ultimately led to his death. The decoration incorporates the constellation Centaurus, commemorating Chiron’s transformation into the night sky.
Unlike the triumph usually associated with Heracles, this episode reveals the destructive consequences of excess and loss of control. Long celebrated as an embodiment of masculine strength and physical beauty, Heracles appears here not as an untouchable hero but as a flawed figure whose actions carry tragic consequences. Long embraced within queer visual culture as an image of masculine beauty, strength and desire, Heracles becomes a vehicle through which the work explores the fragile boundary between power and vulnerability, admiration and self-destruction.
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KS 