Artist Statement
Creating is my way of thinking through things and presenting my findings and convictions to the world. Much of my work aims to communicate both the fragility of life and the beauty of it. This often comes in the form of detailed flowers with symbolic meaning attached to them. I’m inspired by 16th and 17th century Dutch still lives that feature dramatic floral arrangements and memento mori such as skulls and insects. I minored in art history, and I enjoy drawing from historical iconography. The temporal beauty of flora compels me, and I make a connection to our own mortality, allowing death to be a consistent theme in my paintings. Bursting through dim and moody backgrounds, I use flowers to insert beauty into dark scenarios and highlight hope. To speak on death without hope is contradicting in my eyes. My personal faith plays a pivotal role in my artwork. I believe that God created humanity from the dirt and dust and that eternity is a necessary topic to consider, so nature that grows from dirt and is temporal yet beautiful is a wonderful vehicle to express these ideas.
CV