Artist's Statement

My paintings are both allegorical and symbolic. They are inspired by dreams, life, music, stories, and current events in which women and women's issues are a central focus. I create psychologically layered surreal portraits and figurative scenes that examine the complexities of the human experience. Rooted in personal memory, archetype, and the cultural narratives that both distort and reveal our identities, my work holds space for both vulnerability and strength.

I reinterpret traditional portraiture. I don’t chase realism or perfection; I seek emotional truth. The women I feature have all manner of different truths to tell: some are family and friends, while others are drawn from history; some are famous for rejecting the oppressive norms of their time, while others are anonymous women photographed in institutions where they were restrained and silenced.
My paintings use symbols to express visually what my words cannot: birds can represent the imperative to sing one’s own song or the courage to struggle against powerful headwinds; a woman juggling knives can exemplify the pressing, often risky, need for women to multitask; vintage newspapers or sheet music collaged onto a work's background can give its subject the sense of being out of time or place.