LIFE, OR SOMETHING LIKE IT, 2025

In LIFE, OR SOMETHING LIKE IT, Anthony White explores the intersection of art and sport, reflecting on how athletes, like artists, have been mythologized through media and mass culture. The center of the composition is dominated by the words Sports Illustrated, the publication that not only shapes how sports are covered but also how athletes are elevated, scrutinized, and commodified. Imagery includes Tonya Harding’s 2003 boxing debut alongside the infamous unraveling of her ice skating career, the torch as a  symbol of illumination and resistance, and a ‘Sentient’ graphic in the upper corner, one of many logos associated with the National Reconnaissance Office’s classified satellite AI program. In the lower right hand corner, Sisyphus labors endlessly, an allegory reinforcing this work's moral: in sport, as in the creation of fine art, effort does not always equal victory. The pursuit of excellence may be admirable, but the outcome is never guaranteed.