In progress current work.
Depression is an insidious disease, seeming fine on the outside while living in turmoil on the inside. I have been using zentangle designs to try and cope with the triggers of depression. In this piece I want to show a transition from the numb repetitive outer appearance to the raw painful inner reflection.
Finding balance within ones self through trauma, anxiety, and depression is no easy feat. This piece honors those who work hard everyday to remind us of our worth and guide us to balance within ourselves. Thank you.
Anxiety attacks our organs as well as our minds. For myself, my heart suffers the greatest pain.
Anxiety steals your breathe as much as your senses. My lungs constrict and feel torn from the inside.
Anxiety is both the devastation of my mind and body and the catalyst of my creativity. It's effects range from giving my hand purpose to making them tremble into uselessness.
Both the cause and the biggest effect of Anxiety, my mind feels like it's not my own. Maybe if I can find balance here, I can ease the anxiety away.
Paintings completed after graduating with my Master’s in 2020
My body of work explores the concept of self-identity. I am the subject of my own work, visually interpreting my struggles with anxiety and trauma. Using reference photos that I take of myself in the midst of anxiety attacks, I paint realistic self-portraits with multiple faces peeling away from one another, each expressing different emotions. The distortion created within my work is an effort to translate my complex feelings of sadness, anger, and fear on to the painted surface. In this way I explore who I am. The final effect borders on disturbing as it reveals a reflection of my reality.
This series was born in January 2020, inspired by the worst experience of my life; the disappearance and death of my aunt. In the months following, more events continued to add to my stress and anxiety and as I went into isolation with the rest of the world, I found myself unable to escape the thoughts and emotions that can overwhelm me. Trying to imagine what the future holds makes my chest tight and my fears rise. Moving forward, I will focus on the short term. To the future, I can only have hope.
Acrylic on stretched canvas. 16x20
Acrylic on stretched canvas. 16x20
Acrylic on stretched canvas. 16x20
Mixed Media on Paper
Mixed Media on Paper
Pencil on paper
Pencil on paper
