The End of Carefree Days: A Junior Self-Portrait Diptych by Maxwell Evans (2013)

The explanation behind my two pictures is fairly straightforward. The picture on the left, with the pen on top of piles of papers, represents hard work. The papers are school assignments, homework, classwork, and any papers that show effort has been put into them. The picture is dark and gloomy to show that I am indoors, working hard on the class work without any outside distractions.

The picture on the left symbolizes being carefree, like playing with toys and reading comic books. All the toys have their own separate stories, unlike the papers which I never seem to remember. The lighting is very bright to show that I am outside, basking in the sun, and that I am happy playing with the items from my childhood. All these toys come together to form the story that is my childhood. Every single item has its own story that I have memorized by heart, unlike the papers which I seem to forget about every time my teacher talks about them.

These two picture relate - or rather, don’t relate - to one another because they are complete opposites. One is hard work and effort, and the other is playing and being carefree. It can be seen as an evolution in some way, that I am evolving from being a child who plays with toys to an adult who works hard. However, I never miss those days more than I do when I’m working on an essay or school project. While it is important to get all work done, I strongly believe that it is more important to realized time wasted having fun is not time wasted, and that it is okay to spend your time doing what you enjoy.