Behold

2025
6 × 4 in.
Watercolor and Ink on Paper

An alien holds a strange object in its hand, staring at it as if it has finally found something it has been searching for. The object resembles a heart, but it is intentionally unrecognizable. It could be flesh, gold, a mineral, an organ, or something that does not exist on Earth at all.

Whatever it is, it is precious to him.

The alien does not hold it like a weapon or something he intends to use. He simply beholds it. The light surrounding the object gives it an almost sacred importance, while his expression suggests fascination rather than understanding. He may not even know exactly what he has found. He only knows that there is something about it worth stopping for.

The piece is about the value we give to things we do not completely understand. Humans do the same thing with love, art, money, religion, memories, and even other people. Sometimes we spend our entire lives searching for something because we believe possessing it will give us an answer, only to finally hold it in our hands and still not completely understand what it means.

The object is intentionally left unanswered. Maybe it is a heart. Maybe it is gold. Maybe it is something far more valuable to him than either of those things could ever be to us.

I REALLY like Behold as the title too because he's literally beholding this mysterious object, but the word also sounds like someone presenting something extraordinary: “Behold.”