Unlike the other pieces I looked at by Elijah Gowin, this piece gave me a comporting feeling. The majority of the works by Gowin made me feel panicked because it looked like the person was falling into something and I immediately felt sympathy anxiety. This work, however, gives me the impression that the woman is simultaneously falling and floating. I was surprised to see that the title of this work is in fact “Of floating and falling.” The arch of the woman’s back, the arms stretch out behind her, and the slightly bent knees all give the distinct impression that this woman is falling. However, the position of her body, straight as opposed to pointing downward, give me the sense that she is actually floating. Even though this work undeniably depicts motion, I also feel that it depicts stability. I feel that at this captured juxtaposition the woman is stable; she is in between falling and floating and has found a balance between the two. If this were a movie that we could start playing at our command, after this moment the woman’s body would peel further downward and then she would start falling—the balance shattered.
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