THE COMPLEXITIES OF SYMPATHY AND EMPATHY

This exhibition explores the concept of empathy and sympathy. Many people experience trauma in their lives but not all are able to openly express their empathy or sympathy for others going through their own traumatic experiences. While I have personally experienced a trauma which allows me to be empathetic to those who have experienced similar events in their lives, some people are only able to be sympathetic due to a lack of experience. I intend for others to be empowered by my open exploration of the meaning and differences between empathy and sympathy.

This exploration is ongoing and changes in significance within my own life regularly. This work explores how we navigate emotional experienced differences. The work serves as a starting point for the audience to consider how to have a better understanding of others’ lived experience and asks for contemplation of the significant difference between empathy and sympathy.