Finding Faces

I’m settling into a cozy spot in my apartment here in Columbia, South Carolina. It’s warmer outside than I remember it being since I first moved here two months ago. This morning I opened up the door to my patio and was immediately greeted with warm, hot sunlight.

It was weirdly reminiscent of Florida. 

I had my coffee while reading a fantasy-romance novel. It’s the one book that’s been sitting on my shelf that I’ve been meaning to finish, though life kept getting in the way. 

And as I sit writing this, it’s Sunday afternoon. I just finished a short painting session in my studio.

Something new is blooming, brewing. . . Breathing.

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A few weeks ago I published my painting series BREATHING, which has since gained recognition from JaamZIN Creative Magazine and Nuu Muse Contemporary Gallery. I’ve been accepted into 7 art markets throughout the summer, and received one rejection letter from a local art gallery I had applied to.

​Overall, I am just overjoyed to be sharing this collection. To be writing about it, talking about it, and showing it off everywhere. In large part, this collection feels like the antithesis of everything I've made prior. And as a result, it feels so incredibly special to me.

This weekend I spent packaging up some prints to send out to collectors. I also packaged up one original painting who found her new home.

It's an interesting position to be in. Creating one collection, marketing it and showing it off, while also working on something new behind the curtain.
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One of my favorite habits while working in my studio is to spend the last two hours experimenting and painting something new. Something unexpected.
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This afternoon I opened up my canvas pad and created some sketches. They’re these beautiful, red-lined portraits with a colorful wash. When I showed one to my boyfriend, he said it looked like watercolors.

I can definitely see the influence, and reason for that opinion. The washes of color, the shallow depth of field, lends to that perception.

I’m currently enjoying a bright color pallet full of reds, blues, and  yellows. The primary colors, the colors that create all others. I’m still promoting my BREATHING collection online, though I’m starting to dabble in something a little different. Portraiture.

I love creating these little characters. I love creating stories. 

Daydreamer. (2024). Oil paint on canvas paper.

I call her “Daydreamer.”

This girl sits, relaxes, closing her eyes gently. There’s something pouring through her mind. These thoughts don’t bother her. No, she loves these thoughts. There’s something special about spending time with yourself, and pouring through each and every little corner of a concept. To thoroughly understand and make friends with it. So she lets the thoughts ebb and flow. Something truly marvelous will come from it. This, she knows.

I also created this second sketch, named Bucket Hat. This girl wears a blue hat, shading her eyes. She’s a little goofy, and she doesn’t mind that. It’s sometime late autumn, and the sun is bright. What’s she to do today? That, for sure, she’ll soon find.

When I paint these characters, I feel at peace. I allow myself to play with the colors, and to create something that I would love to hang in my own home. Pieces that I’m excited to talk about and share with others. Pieces that, together, create a larger story.

Soon, I will start photographing and preparing these for prints as well. I have a handful of art markets coming up in May, June, July, and August. I’m so excited to see the city of Columbia, and introduce myself as an artist here.

Before I go, I wanted to share a little something I was thinking about. The pull, the tugging feeling that captures me when I work on my artwork.

There’s a lot of learning happening. I’m starting to approach marketing my artwork (and myself), and  embracing the ebbs and flows of life as an artist. To embrace the swing and a miss. And not let it get to me.

Instead, I have to follow that desire to create. No matter what. Wherever life decides to take me, that’s fine. But I’m finding that feeling, and moving towards it no matter the cost. That’s what it means to be an artist, I think. Moving towards that feeling, the feeling of awe when you share something meaningful. And continuing to, no matter the cost, because what would life be without sharing your world with others.