Bill Viola gives meanings to his works within a social and psychological context. When observing his pieces, you are simply exposed to the labyrinth of the human consciousness. Viola cleverly explores the world we live in with the observance of human behaviour as well as of interpretation of religion, opening our eyes to the elaborate environment we have gradually developed. How is it that over the years we as a species have grown further distant from each over, separated by our own personal islands like at a bus stop? Yet when we are faced with trauma, we suddenly have the need to assist and care, only then does the ‘look after the herd’ instinct catch in? His various presentations range from the double edged sword of the elements in terms of water fire and earth to simple captivations of time and place which delicately awe us, despite having so much to do with everyday life. He uses realistic emotion to do this, like the wring of the hands in grief, each movement has a simple and then deeper purpose. In the end, he focuses on the whole of life itself, unravelling the simple sediments, to search into deeper meaning. With the main focus of ‘what is real?’ he laments that our usual lives are engrossed in a simple “no surprises” comatose. Everything yet to be discovered has been discovered, so we need to find a direction, a new perspective. He gently implies that the only obstacles we have not yet conquered is life itself and in peeling back the meaning, with the raw idea we can finally redeem ourselves and move forward.
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