To describe the process of my artistic endeavors, I will quote the extraordinary Paula Rego: “If you put frightening things into a picture, then they can’t harm you. In fact, you end up becoming quite fond of them.”

Art is known for being able to visually showcase that which is typically hidden in our thoughts and emotions and this project continued to exemplify that for me. Mental health, sexuality, feminism, and the deterioration of our environment are all things that bring about mixed emotions associated with fear, shame, and uncertainty. To create large scale paintings is to create a mirror that allows me to confront myself and the feelings of disarray that encompass my being on any given day. The more I paint, the more I use color and brush stroke to fight that which wears on me, the more empowered I begin to feel as a greater sense of ease sinks into my body and my mind. In all that I’ve learned in my journey through life it is this: without art I lose a key component of my being and my freedom and thus, I am nothing. Art is who I am and who I am is in my art.