Elisa Adams

Artist Statement

Death, The Chariot and The Devil are sculptures from Formed by the Fates, an immersive multimedia installation exploring the Major Arcana of the tarot as a symbolic language for human experience. Each piece gives form to an archetypal force — the exertion of will, the necessity of transformation, the confrontation with shadow — and together they propose a psychological arc that is both sequential and circular.

Death:
Death is not the end — it is the sacred clearing that makes space for what must come next. While this card can mark physical loss, it more often speaks to the deep, personal endings within: the shedding of old identities, beliefs, or relationships that no longer serve your becoming.
Here, a soapstone ram’s head represents death — expressionless, still, and silent. It is surrounded by felted poppies, ancient symbols of both death and renewal. Together, they hold the paradox of loss and life — of beauty found in what fades.
This is a crossing you cannot undo. A chapter is closing. It may come with pain or resistance, but it also brings possibility. Just as trees return after winter, so too will you rise — changed, but alive.
Message: Let go. Grieve if you must, but don’t look back. What ends now is clearing the way for something far more true to who you are becoming.

The Chariot:
Carved from richly veined alabaster in shifting greys and browns, this horse’s head captures the raw will and focused momentum of The Chariot. The horse, a timeless symbol of strength and determination, becomes the vessel through which intention meets action and signals momentum — not just movement, but purposeful, focused drive. You are in control now, hands on the reins, eyes on the path ahead. The vision is clear, the plan is in motion, and the energy is aligned for progress. You know where you’re going and what it takes to get there.
Symbolized by the horse’s head, the Chariot is powered by strength, discipline, and sheer will. This is not reckless speed, but strategic motion — the kind that turns plans into reality.
Message: You have what it takes. Harness your focus, stay aligned with your vision, and lead with intention. The path is open — now ride.

The Devil:
A ceramic devil’s face—fierce, raw, and charged with dark energy—embodies the force of entrapment. During its creation, the weight of negativity was palpable. Then, as the kiln fires raged, fate intervened: the sculpture fell, shattering into pieces. Karma had spoken.
Yet from destruction, transformation emerged. Repaired through the Japanese art of kintsugi, the fractures now gleam with gold—honoring the beauty found in what was broken.
The Devil warns of addiction, obsession, and the illusion of powerlessness. It is the feeling that something outside of you has taken control. But in every crack, there is truth. And in truth, the first step toward freedom.

This attention to material is central to this particular exhibition. I work with stone, primarily, and mixed media was needed for their particular relationships with light, time, and energy— qualities that allow symbolic meaning to arise from sustained encounter. They are objects that ask to be stood with and feel what arises inside the viewer.