ABOUT ME

I make oil paintings that center women, emotion, and narrative, often pulling from portraiture to build scenes that feel familiar but slightly off. My work is rooted in a quiet anger that comes from thinking about how women are expected to be seen, and how often that expectation flattens or distorts real experience. I’m interested in the gap between how femininity is performed and how it actually feels. Many of my figures hold tension in their expressions or bodies, even when the surface of the painting appears controlled or composed. I want the viewer to feel like something isn’t quite right, even if they can’t immediately explain why.

 

My work is influenced by feminist artists like Judy Chicago and Jenny Saville in terms of content, particularly their direct engagement with the female body and lived experience. Stylistically, I look to painters such as Salman Toor, Lisa Yuskavage, and Colleen Barry, whose use of color, lighting, and figure pushes narrative beyond straightforward realism. I work primarily in oil paint because of its flexibility and depth. The ability to layer, adjust, and rework surfaces allows me to build up my works, which feels aligned with the way I think through ideas. Oil also lets me balance control and looseness. Some areas can feel highly detailed while others remain loose or unresolved. This controlled chaos feels aligned with the theme of many of my works.

 

Over time, my work has become more intentional in how it communicates. Earlier pieces focused more on pure realism, but I’ve shifted toward using portraiture as a tool for storytelling, rather than just capturing a likeness. Now, I think more about what each figure is doing psychologically, and how composition, gesture, and color express that. I think my work fits within a broader contemporary conversation around feminist painting and the representation of women, but I approach it through a more personal and emotionally driven lens. I’m less interested in making clear statements (this is what this painting means, this is what the meaning is) and more interested in creating images that hold a lot of complexity. I want humor, discomfort, and anger to exist at the same time in my work because I feel all of those things at once in my daily life.

 

Moving forward, I want to push my work further in scale and project time, creating pieces that feel more immersive and detailed. I’m also interested in continuing to develop a visual language that feels more mine.