The Elders
I couldn’t return to my bartending job when the pandemic hit Berlin. As a new mom, I realized it was time to take my art seriously.
It was challenging to get back to it because I had all this trauma tied to my art.
The completion of The Blues of My Oblivion was a mark for me to understand the whys and to fully move on from the things that still had a grip on me.
This collection shows my perspective through aphantasia dreams and memories of Arizona. My spirit is only now opening to the world, free from a painful past, like a sunrise just beyond the horizon.
Elf Owl (Hiding in Plain Sight) - I set out to challenge myself as an artist and used only 3 colors with this painting, using the bluest Prussian blue and yellow and white to create this gorgeous teal color. If you look close enough, hiding in plain sight is a tiny elf owl. I can relate to this little owl. Its habitat is threatened by overconsumption, climate change, and capitalism. It seems overwhelming how small the owl is compared to the rest of the desert, but it still plays a vital role in the Sonoran Desert ecosystem.
Grandfathers - Some of the oldest plants on the earth are Saguaros. These cactuses usually grow to be over 150 years old! It’s no wonder they have been referred to as grandfathers. When night falls in the desert, away from the glow of the city, the sky lights up with galaxies, and the saguaros reach so far up they could float away into the stars.
The Old Neighborhood - A street pole mingles with wild desert saguaros on the edge of the old neighborhood, my ode to walking along dusty dirt roads until the sun sets.
Desert Oasis - When I made this painting, I was in the process of an emotional recovery. It was as if a monsoon had come through my soul to sweep the darkness away. That’s why I love this piece. It reminds me that the sun will shine again tomorrow, and quenched flowers will bloom.
The Phoenix Effect - The night skies glow with lights from the city, dancing with the last rays of sunshine for the day. Something about Phoenix wants to pull you in and not let you go. But every decision you make can lead you into a different direction. That’s the Phoenix effect.
The Blues of my Oblivion - A great horned owl luminates over the grand saguaro, does he see the jackrabbit in the bush? It took four months to work through this epic night sky. Time was spent recovering from a past that made painting difficult for me to do at this point. I had to paint these clouds over and over again into themselves, toiling the way they do, just as my thoughts and emotions ruminate. Learning my lessons, and pushing through darkness to achieve my dreams. This painting is a visual representation of my dreams and memories of growing up in Arizona.
Estrellas de la Noche - Something happened when I completed this and put those last whisps of cloud in the sky, it came together so harmoniously that I cried. This painting made me realize, I can evoke emotion with my brush strokes. Estrellas de la Noche shows the vastness of the desert night sky with sparkling stars and planets, and a saguaro forest underneath.