WHAT HE LEFT BEHIND
2017-2018
Even after a violent relationship ends, the pain resulting from instances of sexual, physical, and emotional abuse lingers, affecting the way survivors view the world and shaping their daily interactions. I use my own body as a tool in my art-making process, engaging in ritualistic practices to physically express the abuse I have endured in prior relationships. By pushing myself to confront my past traumas, I begin the path toward healing and reclaiming my autonomy.
WHERE I REST MY BONES
2018
Creating these images was a physical and emotional challenge for me. I engaged with different elements of my childhood house, yard, and the surrounding woods, drawing upon memories from my adolescence.
While I have fond memories of my childhood, I have a very complicated relationship with my hometown, partially due to its problematic past in U.S. history and also because of my experiences living in a conservative, religious pocket of the deep south. Perhaps this tumultuous relationship is why I’ve never felt completely connected to one place.
Skeptical of the idea of a “community,” I float quietly through the cities and towns I inhabit or visit, unsure of where I fit, always acting as the observer. Yet, even without any emotional ties to one place, I embody a multitude of passions and experiences, further complicating my identity and my journey to discovering where I belong.
REFRAMING HISTORY
2016
In this series, I explore historical paintings which glorify and romanticize tales of sexual violence against women. By visually aligning myself with the women pictured, I create a connection between women's traumatic experiences in the past and the present.
Paintings pictured: Rape of the Sabine Woman, Rape of Europa, Judith Slaying Holofernes, Rape of Proserpina, The Rape of the Daughters of Leucippus, and Susanna and The Elders.