About

 I am currently a senior BFA Art Therapy major at Millikin University with concentrations in drawing and painting. Through both mediums, I create images of colorful, abstract forms and spaces that convey a sense of motion and display varying textures. I integrate my two mediums by including elements of drawing in all of the paintings and vice versa. Artists that inspire me and my work include but are not limited to, Llewellyn Skye, Bronwyn Barton, and Pauline Jans. 

The main elements I strive to achieve in all my paintings and drawings are movement and texture with the use of energetic brushstrokes and gestural, meandering lines. I also create a variety of textures by using glazes, drips, and drawn line to unify my compositions. The nature of mixing media allows me to play with layers that I otherwise wouldn’t be able to if I limited myself to using paint and pastels exclusively from one another. My pieces include both implied and tactile texture by combining acrylic paint, water-soluble crayons, oil pastels, and soft pastels.

My art is inspired by and depicts abstractions of the small things in nature that are often underappreciated or go unnoticed. The organic shapes and motifs in my paintings and drawings, sometimes purposefully and other times coincidentally, resemble objects in nature such as leaves, trees, flowers, clouds, bugs, fruits, etc.

I want the viewer to become immersed in my pieces and feel inclined to visually explore their contents so they can determine for themselves what symbols or themes they may recognize. Portraying a sense of motion on a still, two-dimensional plane alters how viewers experience and perceive art. Suddenly, our minds can imagine abstract forms coming to life.

Much of the meaning behind my art is related to my appreciation for the mere act of making art. As a lot of people do, I struggle with giving up control in my life. However, when I draw and paint, I simply follow and trust my intuition, surrendering these fears to the brush or pastel in my hand. Artmaking is liberating for me to do because while I work, I am able to focus on how the process of creating the art makes me feel rather than worrying about how the product will turn out. I simply enjoy the act of creating instead of fearing whether or not I am doing “the right thing."