KYLE presents a disaster scene in his acrylic painting Obliteration. The painting depicts, what can be seen as, a tsunami consuming ocean front property

     Since KYLE uses realistic images of what you might see if you were caught in a storm like Hurricane Andrew, he relies on the body language of the man and the destruction of buildings to convey the message in this painting. The body language of the man shows that he is trying to run from what is happening behind him by the way he is stretched out, with his legs spread apart while his knees are bent and his right arm is stretched out straight holding onto a bar and his left arm is positioned like he is resting it on something. With his head turned to the side I think it shows that maybe he wants to help who is still left to die in the dark waters. His hand gripping the pipe might indicate that he is thinking about stopping and just holding on and maybe having the chance at surviving that way. The destruction of the buildings shows beach like houses and hotels being destroyed by the water. The house looks to be a very southern style like something you would find on beach front property. Showing buildings that are still kind of intact help the viewer get a since of what is being destroyed while showing the debris left over by the building already gone show the viewer what is lost. The little details like the blanket in the right corner of the painting gives a since of a homely feeling. KYLE lets it represents the simple things that are lost in tragedies like hurricane Andrew. The car is old and rusted from the salt of the ocean air and with this KYLE shows the first step that happens when a town is being destroyed. Instead of the car drowning with the buildings it is crushed and rusted. Its lights are broken and it is buried under a pile of rubbish. It is the beginning of something tragic. The debris that is located all over the painting shows the loss of the town. This is no longer a town full of thriving people and buildings lit up at night. It is now a town that no longer exists. It has been torn down and threw away by the power of nature. KYLE uses hurricane Andrew to pull the emotion out of the viewers and shows what it is like to see a town after a hurricane hits.

     KYLE’s use of dark colors and light pastel colors draws attention to the fact that something bright is dying in the darkness of something evil. The dark colors are used to draw attention the sky and the water. They are both dark blue almost black except for the crashing waves that are a cloudy white. There is no light in the sky to show a since of hope. Everything seems to be being consumed by the darkness. The buildings are painted in light pastel colors to show the life of the town being drowning in the darkness of the water. By using different pastel colors to paint each building or debris pile, KYLE gives the viewer a feel of what it would look like if all the light from a town was being drawn out by dark waters waiting to destroy it. The rusted color used to paint the car and pieces of the metal pipes lying around shows that this is by an ocean and not a lake because the salt in the air has rusted these things over time. The house is painted a natural white color like most houses would be found in, while a pile of debris is painted in a light purple. This draws attention to the debris that seems to be the inside of a used to be house. Giving the viewer two different views of what a hurricane can do to a house on the inside and on the outside. KYLE uses this to draw attention to the people that could have been hurt in the houses during hurricane Andrew.

     KYLE uses Obliteration to give a since of what it would be like to watch a town drown in dark waters and live to tell the story. He uses prospective to portray a town that is being destroyed by raging ocean water. He uses the debris to show the destruction already accomplished by the water and the remaining buildings and car to show what is left to be destroyed. The realistic portrayal of the disaster allows KYLE to grab the viewers’ attention and make them feel the sorrow that the people in this town must have felt while watching it turn to nothing. KYLE’s work is effective in showing the realistic view point of a hurricane destroying a town and leaving nothing but rubbish behind. It gives emotion to the viewer and lets them be a part of the dramatic scene they are looking at. In the 1990s being attacked by a hurricane is worse than being attacked now. Back then no one really had the money to fix their houses or a whole town for that matter. KYLE uses the destruction to bring out the disasters that we may not want to happen but that will happen anyways without our control. A hurricane like hurricane Andrew can hit any town or city or state anywhere, leaving many people without homes and cars or maybe even killing many people. Hurricane Andrew is a great example of the destruction that can happen to a town and a great example of the lives that can be lost along the way.