Personal/Artist Statement

Have you ever played ding-dong ditch with the Grim Reaper?

I have been close to death. Possibly as close as old friends. That proximity to the end has acted as more of a motivation than I ever thought possible. My passion has always been for the arts, and it grew through the course of my life. Sketches and doodles manifested into many ideas and dreams of what I envisioned as a beautiful life. I try to pass this passion to my children as well, encouraging them to explore creative outlets and to always look for the positive in life.
I was hospitalized in 2009 at 72lbs and given no hope for survival. In this bleak reality, art and the message of positivity grew to a pinnacle of importance. It was my way to vent and to try to find a meager portion of hope for some sort of future past this predicament. My young children and my art gave me the courage to recover through impossible odds and get back to my studies, further restoring and to reigniting my passion for the arts in a new way that blended the same hope and humor with a colorful morbidity. I began painting scenes of fantasy and experimenting with surrealism. My art became my therapy, embodying my experience and other childhood fears with a humorous spin that retained a hopeful optimism and vision.
        In the summer of 2016, my son was diagnosed with level 3 autism. The diagnosis was expected, but came fast on top of other surgeries he had to undergo. He always loved to watch me do my art, and that is when I felt a new mission manifesting in my heart. Art was my passion already, but what if I could use it for others? My research came to Art Therapy. Instantly, it was as though the answer was there all along, and I was only seeing it now for the very first time. I learned that I could teach art to others and help them to explore, to create, as well as to heal. That has become my life’s mission as well as my goal.