Still Breathing, 2020

                          Digital Print

                       Thinking, 2020

                          Digital Print

                       Teeth, 2020

                          Digital Print

    I want to understand what being honest about trauma in my life means. This search informs my work, and it connects me to everyone who has been changed by their traumas. Instead of trying to express something false through the creation of art, I am able to be my truest self. Feeling plenty of emotion bottled up inside me, my work tends to have a heavy contrast between heavy black and a range of colors. With that release often comes an abstract mixture of colors representing my unprocessed feelings. The paint I use is an extension of my experience and with that brushstroke transforms my pain into a positive experience.
    Living in a society filled with an altered perception of what it means to be a human being, I hope my honesty can translate into my work, allowing others to open themselves up to the world. Playing upon the difference between the false imagery put out today and the harsh honesty of what people go through, I want to impact people by being entirely candid. I aim to do this in my work by using experiences that have happened in my life that I may not find altogether comfortable speaking about and focusing on them. I want to create art that speaks to my truest self which is an ever changing experience based on what most accurately relates to me.  Choosing not to sugarcoat subjects, I believe, will be a refreshing outlet for myself. Though it may be uncomfortable to reveal personal information this process has brought me catharsis.
    Suffering from physical and mental trauma, I find it interesting to create work in relation to it. Going misdiagnosed for six months, my body became ravaged by scabies. Long after this, I continue to suffer from resulting mental side effects. By depicting x-ray images with my gestural marks lying underneath, I feel as though I can take away my skin, a feature that defined me for such a long time and represents the way I was feeling while it was going on. Instead of choosing to live with shame, I let go of it through my art.
    During this time of Coronavirus, art has been vital to me functioning successfully. With so much change, I have been able to rely on this activity to be a constant within my life. As Coronavirus struck, I have begun to have an emphasis within my art on how platforms alter media for a broader audience. Having to see most people as of lately through a screen has caused a gap in friendships and a lack of an authentic experience. Now more than ever, I am looking to social media for validation and acceptance. With this unhealthy cycle going on, I believe it is essential for those aware of this to have honesty within our outlets. I aim to do this through making my experience as authentic and honest as possible.