Justin Matherly's sculpture confronts themes of fragility, endurance, and the human condition, often incorporating medical equipment such as crutches or walkers as structural supports for cast concrete forms derived from ancient sculpture. The title, drawn from Spinoza's *Ethics*, underscores the tension between striving and struggle, excellence and limitation, suggesting that greatness is hard-won and infrequently achieved. The work embodies a raw, philosophical urgency, bridging classical ideals with the unglamorous realities of bodily and existential effort.