The Condor

The possibility of self-awareness is impressive in the way the universe is vast, almost too colossal to consider. It requires a separation from the self, a witnessing of the self as a knowledgeable observer, omnipotent, external. It's a strange dichotomy, the idea of watching yourself be you. How can one consciously surpass the other? Einstein said, "Problems cannot be solved at the same level of awareness that created them." This very idea of heightening self-awareness to explore oneself without the limits of the body, of biology, this is the idea that drove me to the landscape of The Condor.

The Condor deals with the individual’s inner struggle with their own demons and their external demand for recognition. It all begins within the self. Our outward fears are extensions of our inward fears. The Condor is a demonstration of how we create self-made prisons through these self-ingrained needs. The need to be accepted, never alone, the need to be okay, this is the human condition. No matter how powerful or satiated we become, everyone craves recognition for their feats and validation for their existence. Even if that validation only comes from the self alone. The danger lies in how far we will go to satisfy these needs.

The preference for solitude is a choice, a need borne from the abandonment of other desires. And some of us will go further and deeper, to very dark places, for the light we crave.

It was important to me to tell a story that stems from these intrinsic conditions that are common, but not commonly shared. I wanted to explore self-awareness and acceptance of oneself and one’s reality, as these are the foundations that fueled this story. It is an allegory of the philosophical thought experiment, “If a tree falls in a forest and no one is around to hear it, does it make a sound?” This is the idea that objects of sense exist only when they are perceived. Like the sound of the tree, it is our innate desire for validation of existence. If we are not perceived and reflected back to ourselves, we lack life. No one wants to be the tree that isn’t heard.

The Condor is a story to demonstrate the dichotomy of power within our own minds; between what's real and what is perceived. We all play tricks on ourselves to convince our minds of the validity of our own past and present. We tell ourselves stories. We make our minds at ease through willfulness, like a mother protecting her child. This is a reminder to step out of our armor and realize the difference in realities; to be bold enough to see yourself objectively. This is what real power, and real courage means.