Hello!
I attend the University of Kentucky where I am pursuing my BFA in art studio with a focus on painting and fibers, as well as a Bachelor's degree in arts administration. I will be graduating this December 2020 and am so excited! After this, I hope to continue my education and earn an MFA in studio art-- my dream school for my Master's is Virginia Commonwealth University, so fingers crossed I get in!
My current body of work is questioning the ideas and truths about sexual desire, sin, shame, and a sense of belonging through the eyes of the Roman Catholic church—which heavily influenced my childhood. By incorporating elements of Catholic iconography into my work it creates an almost devotional aspect, like an altar piece, which in return forces you to question whether this faith is helping or hurting. I have based a lot of my work around Saint Melangell, who I took as my patron saint at the time of confirmation. She is a virgin saint described to be a protector of nature and animals—specifically rabbits. Due to this I depict animals in my work as sacred objects with various levels of meaning pertaining to old folklore, Catholic traditions, and modern symbolism.
I primarily work in painting and fibers. Through these materials I can communicate my ideas of confusion within the Catholic church. Painting offers up a historical aspect to my work and speaks to the time when most paintings were completed by men, either for the church or depicting naked women. Through painting, I can reclaim the historical “male gaze” as my own and rewrite the traditional narrative with a positive and empowering feminist view of the female body. Furthermore, working in fibers also brings an aspect of feminism and traditional women’s work which allows me to speak to the traditional roles of women in the church, and how that does not fit my modern-day mentality. By using fiber materials, I can communicate a softness that women are expected to have in the church. However, the statements I am making through my sculptural fiber pieces overpower the apparent delicateness of the material. This allows my fibers work to be a play on the traditional view of women’s work as well as the conservative view of women in the church.
I am inspired both by works that celebrate the Catholic faith, like in the Renaissance, and those that playfully engage with the idea of lust, as seen during the Rococo era. Furthermore, I am drawn to the almost sadistic nature of European folklore. I take into consideration all these historical elements when designing my work. In my own work, I often find myself using animals as symbols to relay contradicting messages of domesticity the church expects of women.
I attend the University of Kentucky where I am pursuing my BFA in art studio with a focus on painting and fibers, as well as a Bachelor's degree in arts administration. I will be graduating this December 2020 and am so excited! After this, I hope to continue my education and earn an MFA in studio art-- my dream school for my Master's is Virginia Commonwealth University, so fingers crossed I get in!
My current body of work is questioning the ideas and truths about sexual desire, sin, shame, and a sense of belonging through the eyes of the Roman Catholic church—which heavily influenced my childhood. By incorporating elements of Catholic iconography into my work it creates an almost devotional aspect, like an altar piece, which in return forces you to question whether this faith is helping or hurting. I have based a lot of my work around Saint Melangell, who I took as my patron saint at the time of confirmation. She is a virgin saint described to be a protector of nature and animals—specifically rabbits. Due to this I depict animals in my work as sacred objects with various levels of meaning pertaining to old folklore, Catholic traditions, and modern symbolism.
I primarily work in painting and fibers. Through these materials I can communicate my ideas of confusion within the Catholic church. Painting offers up a historical aspect to my work and speaks to the time when most paintings were completed by men, either for the church or depicting naked women. Through painting, I can reclaim the historical “male gaze” as my own and rewrite the traditional narrative with a positive and empowering feminist view of the female body. Furthermore, working in fibers also brings an aspect of feminism and traditional women’s work which allows me to speak to the traditional roles of women in the church, and how that does not fit my modern-day mentality. By using fiber materials, I can communicate a softness that women are expected to have in the church. However, the statements I am making through my sculptural fiber pieces overpower the apparent delicateness of the material. This allows my fibers work to be a play on the traditional view of women’s work as well as the conservative view of women in the church.
I am inspired both by works that celebrate the Catholic faith, like in the Renaissance, and those that playfully engage with the idea of lust, as seen during the Rococo era. Furthermore, I am drawn to the almost sadistic nature of European folklore. I take into consideration all these historical elements when designing my work. In my own work, I often find myself using animals as symbols to relay contradicting messages of domesticity the church expects of women.