You can’t stop a pandemic from impacting you, any more than you could stop a tsunami from sweeping you up in its surge. For me, it has certainly impacted me and my art. While the Covid-19 storm swirled outside, I sought refuge inside, in my home and in my art. I have felt every emotion over the past year fiercely, whether loneliness, longing, love, or loss. These things were always present in my work but they feel palpable now in everything I undertake. Working in self portrait and creating these images while pandemic life threatened to swallow me whole provided a sanctuary, a place to live in my emotions, and a way to ultimately move forward. I will always remember this time of creating at home and the many restrictions it placed on me. Although the restrictions caused my physical bounds to be narrow, they challenged me to think wide in concept and emotion.
