Artist Statement

I am inspired by the relationship between humans and technology and the influence it has on our lives. The desire to move toward flawlessness and efficiency distorts what it means to be a human being, it has brought us to a reality that teeters on the edge of dystopia. The pressure to homogenize, to fit within the aesthetic and performative expectations of an environment whose values shift in an instant, has permeated my existence to the point of enragement. My understanding of myself has been mangled by the constant evaluation facilitated by social media, scarring the expectations I hold for myself and others. I have spent most of my life attuned to my thoughts rather than my body or my environment, yet I have placed an overwhelming emphasis on the physical, an insatiable accumulation of goods, an obsession with beauty. I've come to recognize that the impulse toward personal curation is not born from self satisfaction, but from a desire to camouflage insecurity. In a perfectly curated environment, there is no value in imperfection, but it is imperfection that makes us human. It is our lack of uniformity that makes people worthwhile. This work is my experimentation with production and my commitment to creation over consumption. I do not create to make perfect pieces. I create to reclaim control over how I spend my time and exist in this world, to reclaim the physicality, will, and inclinations that are stripped away by the industrial separation of mind, body, and soul. I meditate on the process of creation, experiencing every moment, dissecting, retracing, layering. It is through dynamic interactions with materials that I engage with texture, strength, and fragility to evoke the feelings of my own experience and offer a moment of relatability. Relatability builds community. Community builds understanding. Understanding creates empathy. And empathy is what will bring us back to the point of it all. Working through the isolation imposed on my generation, my work is an offering of vulnerability in an attempt to strengthen human connection.