Late Night Group Selfie, Ink and Watercolor 14x11"
Artist Statement
A universal experience, death is one of the two experiences that every human has in common, a beginning and an end. Curiously there is an overwhelming amount of fear, stigma and taboo that surround death and how it is addressed, impeding the acceptance of death as a natural part of life. This body of work is intended to encourage viewers to interact with death on a more personal and intimate level at their own pace. Skeletonizing beloved figures in my life and juxtaposing them with familiar environments and relatable activities allows for a positive discourse around accepting death as a natural part of the cycle, making the moments depicted all the more endearing. Imbued with the love and excitement captured by the moments these works are created from. Stripped to their “bare bones” these family members and friends do not appear as fiends or ghouls like skeletons might represent in other works, here they are what remains of happy memories, celebrating the time we have together. Death is natural, just like the depictions of these skeletons.
