Skunks are usually looked at in fear and disgust due to their instinctual behaviors of spraying foul odors as a defense mechanism. Skunks are not thought of as graceful or elegant, but rather ugly and repulsive. I sought to emphasize the tenderness and sensitivity of the skunk through an unconventional gesture that opens up the viewer into considering new ways of seeing this animal. The gesture is seemingly tragic and graceful, yet reveals a certain vulnerability that induces an empathetic response. This energy I seek to create, creates an allusion to giving in or resisting an outside force, emphasizing the serenity of surrender, a significant aspect of both the animal’s condition of being and the human condition.