Artist Statement

For me, a portrait is more than an image of a face in a crowd, just as a rock is more than a part of a garden wall. There is both sadness and beauty in the stories below the face we present to the world. Something can appear strong on the surface, but crack with the slightest pressure. Identity is informed by joy and grief, but grief doesn’t dissipate. Grief becomes new things. My work seeks to find those elements that shape identity and explore the threads that connect each person to their past, their inner life, and society as a whole. Sometimes those connections are inspiring and affirming, sometimes they are negative and harmful, but something magical happens when you turn anger and grief into art. You create connection and self-affirmation.