This exhibition is a celebratory tribute to Anthony Bourdain and the life he lived. I choose this image of him because he is relaxed, smiling, has a drink in his hand and room next to him on the couch for company. He invites the viewer in with his warmth and the promise of good conversation. He invites the viewer to sit, stay awhile, and exchange stories and wisdom.

While I did not want the experience to be sad, I also did not want to ignore the somberness of the situation. Keeping this in mind, I enthroned him darkness. Not the kind of darkness that causes anxiety, but enough to remind the viewer that part of his authentic lifestyle was that he was willing to talk about the dark parts of his life publicly.

Finally, I choose to incorporate map textures that have been distorted, re-colored, pixelated, and morphed into the scene. The first map (in red) is the map of Paris, the birthplace of Bourdain's love affair with food. His first trip to Paris was on a family vacation. While at a restaurant, he ordered escargot because he knew he wanted to try something he could not get as good anywhere else. From that moment, he was hooked on good food and the cultures that surrounded.

Later in life, he became a chef in New York City, the second map incorporated (behind the text). It was in New York that he wrote his book "Kitchen Confidential" which catapulted him to fame. However, he once lamented that "by letting the world in on his love affair with cooking, he managed to kill the thing he loved most."

The map of Paris is on the end intentionally. It sits where the museum visitor would both enter and exit the exhibition. Paris was the beginning of his journey and was also the end. In June of 2018, when he missed a reservation for a meal at one of his favorite restaurants in Paris, it was clear something was very wrong. The next morning he was found dead by suicide. His tumultuous affair with life itself was finally over.