Acrylic and pastel on canvas

36” x 48”

2019

The final meaning of this painting was forged completely in its process. There was a lot of intentionality during its creation to remain open, unguarded, and vulnerable…both in my life and in the artwork. Keeping the awareness of a tendency to tighten up at the forefront of my mind, I fought against desires to cover, to tie up what could be seen as loose ends, and to “clean” anything up.

My goal here was to expose — to leave exposed the fundamental bones of what the work needed to be without adding too much fluff, to expose the architecture of the current process of my life, complete with the raw questions and doubts, however painful and vulnerable it may be, and to make visible the layers of work and transformation that began with a humble skeleton.

An exercise in uncovering and making vulnerable, this painting serves as a reminder to let the painful, ugly, brilliant process show, to let the carefully constructed layers expose what’s truly beneath, and to let the protective guard fall with the faith that it will be okay. What I find left is an unwillingness to remain jaded or hidden and a beautifully intricate, rich, dynamic piece of art that proudly showcases each brilliant layer, beginning with the bones.