Austin Martin White

“Ambition leads me not only farther than any other man has been before me, but as far as I think it possible for man to go.”
— Captain James Cook

“When I initially started to work on the drawings for these paintings in the summer of 2020, I was consumed by the absurdity of Space X’s first manned shuttle launch which just happened to coincide with the George Floyd protests and a global COVID19 Pandemic. I brought this sentiment along with me when I visited the Metropolitan Museum’s online etching archive to research references for drawing. I was searching for an instance that occurred during the colonial period representing a regression in pursuit of the ideals of progress and pertaining to the Enlightenment and colonialism. What I discovered was the 1785 etching “The Death of Captain Cook” by Francesco Bartolozzi, which depicts a battle scene set on the shores of Hawaii. At the etching’s center is the moment right before the British explorer captain James Cook is killed by the Kanaka Maoli people.

Mark Twain is quoted as saying, “History doesn‘t repeat itself, but It often rhymes”. When looking through hundreds of images in art historical archives, one is struck by how true this phrase rings. Cook’s demise may not be repeated in future exploration of space, but I certainly anticipate it rhyming.”

— Austin Martin White