Statement

I paint acrylic portraits of musical pioneers from my teen years, the 1980s. The subjects of my paintings embody defiance, confidence, and self acceptance. The process of painting them feels like a sort of healing meditation. I purposefully paint them with reverence to honor their influential role in my life. 

The portraits start with the memory of a song. After deciding on my focus I research the music video for images. The videos are slowed down to find the right moment of the song, or a particular facial expression. Once collected, images are then manipulated to improve on the color and composition.They are cropped quite close to the face because I want to hone in on the expression. I try to decipher what is behind their eyes. What are they thinking? How did they find their way around the world? Do they possess the attributes that I project onto them?

Growing up I turned to music for belonging and positive life lessons. The stories in the songs let me know that it was okay to feel different or weird, that it was completely necessary to be myself, and that life could be a great adventure of my choosing. I hope the viewers will not just see a painting of a famous musician, but to also see captured images of my cherished surrogate elders.