As a survivor of child abuse, talismans saved me. The smallest things would become talismans; of hope and love. During my recovery from trauma, art came to save me - suddenly and insistently, and it is no surprise to me that talismans show up consistently in my work. They are the language my pain has always spoken; modern symbols and objects that take on universal meaning like hieroglyphics.
To me, pentimenti is the physical representation of how we heal from trauma, and Silly Little Monster mirrors this process. The first layers contain raw truth that is ugly and painful. That pain informs the texture and nuance of what comes after. The pain isn’t hidden, it is transformed into something more, that I hope speaks to others and their own journeys of healing.
Silly Little Monster is a reminder that there is beauty in pain and in the smallest of things. My hope is that viewers find symbols from their own stories in the layers, and feel acceptance from that connection.