Sometimes you discover an artwork that perfectly externalises a very internal and personal struggle. Everything is fine by Toronto based 3D creator Everlstng or ‘Everlasting’, manages to both subtly and powerfully do just that. The work itself feels slightly cryptic. We find a central figure in a bright, pastel tinted room, looking at what could be an empty frame or a non-reflective mirror. The luminous and soothing tones of the setting contrast with the darkening smoke and fiery glow of the blaze that’s slowly consuming the character. Ever tiny detail of the room seems to enhance that surreal contrast, from the handcrafted, baroque wooden frame and side table to the grassy pink carpet. An empty pitcher within hand’s reach of the burning figure underlines a certain hopelessness.
If only ‘someone’ would have filled this with water, if only ‘someone’ would have noticed the fire when it was just a spark... But as it stands these subtle hints have gone unnoticed and the looming tragedy is slowly becoming fact. The photo-realism of the piece is stunning, the interplay of colors and light ingeniously crafted. But the message I take from the artwork is perhaps strongest of all. We are surrounded by people who are silently suffering, who say ‘they’re fine’ when their worlds are quietly falling apart, who leave small hints that in hindsight we wish we would have caught sooner. It recalls the wonderful poem ‘A lesson’ from author ‘Lang Leav’: “There's a girl who smiles all the time, to show the world that she is fine. A boy who surrounds himself with friends, wishes that his life would end. For those who say they never knew, the saddest leave the least of clues…"
