“The Storm We Weathered.” is a collection of oil paintings created in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic that explores themes of self-reflection, the human condition, community and identity. My materials, heavy layers of oil paint and oil pastel, are active participants in my work.
As the world begins to slowly open up again, the works explore a yearning to connect with each other after living in an extended period of isolation since the start of 2020. The overall sentiment remains and the paintings are accessible and visually calming, yet still chaotic and slightly out of reach. The fogginess and uncertainty of the times is presented with varying degrees of density in the paint, as well as drips and layers, but coupled with my choice of bright, vibrant colors, the work evokes an elusive feeling of optimism and joy for the future. We’ve been observing the world on screens and I’m using my impasto style, three-dimensional work to counter this recent virtual, two-dimensional existence, and I’m experimenting with the dynamic tension between connected comfort and distance with the paint's weight and texture.
Each work in the series tells its own story and has its own place. Seen together, the collection is like a brightly colored room of ideas communicating independently and together at the same time. I hope you will find a piece of your own narrative in this work.
See the entire collection here.
“Blue Light”
“Fractures”
“Woman”
“When the Night is Over”