“Bringing the gifts that my ancestors gave, I am the dream and the hope of the slave.
I rise. I rise. I rise.”
— Maya Angelou, Still I Rise
ART
Butter (my intelligent, brave, and spunky 11 year old) was my entry into the art world. I have always encouraged all her interests and drawing has been one since she a toddler. As she got older, I got her paints and crafts but they weren’t much her jam. I figured I might as well use them as to not waste money. To my surprise, I enjoyed the creative process much more than I thought I would. Art has been such a lifesaving outlet for reparenting my inner child and coping through my depressive episodes, anxiety attacks, and most importantly processing grief.
Past Work
Charcoal panel of triptych I completed for my drawing class final May 2022. Depicts yoga at a lake with desert flora
Full triptych. Middle panel shows a sun made of sunflowers showering down rain and love onto a naked woman adorned with jewels and braids with beads, dancing in water- as well as watering the garden she's grown. The garden includes flowers, a desert rose crystal which represents unyielding focus and commitment long with a U.S. dime which represents connection to intuition
Ink panel of triptych showing abstract view of mountains, desert flora, different types of ink techniques, and a face which was a happy mistake that I turned into representing the way in which 'we wear the mask'.
Sand Meets Sea 12x12 acrylic pour with gold foil, matte finish
Blue Heals 11x14 abstract acrylic on canvas Gifted to a friend as a house warming present
Charcoal assignment completed for drawing class Midterm. Represents my journey since moving from Detroit to Arizona. Depicted below the mountain (within me) from left to right: darkness, the things I was holding on to that were weighing me down, tools and resources I used to get through grief, lightness. Depicted above the mountain (my outer world) are the things me and Butter did to connect with each other over the years - road trip to the west coast, walking bc we didn't have a car, hiking, yoga, bike riding, and plant care.
Be Free 11x14 abstract diptych, acrylic on canvas