Unto Death is titled after Soren Kierkegaard's book “The Sickness Unto Death," which examines despair in relation to oneself and one's connection to the spiritual.
This series was the product of a group of close-knit friends whom Armstrong met with regularly. They discussed difficult questions focused on the nature of being and the roots of the Christian faith. These questions included theological problems such as the problem of pain, moral responsibility, sins of omission, the definition of hell. and many others.
After these discussions Armstrong found a deep desire to visually depict the spiritual practice of these individuals. With a 4x5 view camera, he captured them in the process of what allowed them to feel the most connected to the sublime. After this he used a mixture of brush-on emulsion and photolithography to make 45” by 55” prints. These pieces are titled with the concordance of the sitters’ chosen verse.
Over time this series expanded past the initial four sitters as Armstrong encountered more individuals that spoke to him about their deeply personal spiritualities.
45x55, Lithography & Brush On Emulsion
In private collection