Moses statue with Passion Flower
2021
Oil, watercolor, ink, and water, photographic transfer on silk. Framed in aluminium.
13” × 10” / 34 × 26 cm
In Moses Statue with Passion Flower, I explore memory, transformation, and the interstitial spaces between crisis and catharsis. A billowing, dynamic form rendered in fluid greens dominates the composition, evoking both movement and emotional flux. At its center is a vestigial yellow core—a trace of a floral shape—that alludes to the fleeting presence of a passion flower. Delicate water stains permeate the silk, adding layers of texture and depth, and serving as tangible imprints of time and experience.
The genesis of this work is rooted in a deeply personal narrative. Faced with the harrowing task of securing my mother’s release from involuntary psychiatric confinement in the United States, I navigated a labyrinth of familial tensions and institutional barriers. This tumultuous journey, charged with feelings of helplessness and desperation, fuels the visual language of the piece.
The fluid green forms reflect my overwhelming tide of emotions and the sense of being engulfed by circumstances beyond my control. They suggest both the chaos of personal upheaval and nature’s indifference to human struggle. The residual yellow floral form symbolizes a delicate yet persistent beacon of beauty and resilience—referencing the passion flowers that unexpectedly overtook my garden wall upon my return to England. This phenomenon encapsulated the duality of nature’s allure and its relentless progression, irrespective of individual plight.
The water stains on the silk aren’t mere aesthetic choices; they are intentional marks signifying the seepage of experience into the very fabric of existence. They evoke tears, rain, and the relentless passage of time, blurring the line between physical and emotional realms, between what is deliberate and what is accidental.
Interwoven into this personal and natural tableau is the fleeting memory of a statue of Moses glimpsed through a car window in Washington Park. Arms uplifted and staff poised to draw water from stone, Moses becomes a powerful symbol of faith and the yearning for miracles in the face of overwhelming odds. This biblical allusion layers the piece with universal significance, bridging my personal narrative with collective archetypes of struggle and deliverance.
By blending oil, watercolor, ink, and photographic transfer on silk, I embrace an interplay of transparency and opacity, control and surrender. Silk’s luminous quality allows pigments to diffuse and merge organically, mirroring the way memories and emotions intertwine within the psyche.
Ultimately, Moses Statue with Passion Flower stands as a poignant meditation on the convergence of personal crisis and transcendent hope. It grapples with themes of vulnerability, resilience, and the transformative power of art to distill complex experiences into a resonant visual form. I invite a contemplative dialogue on how moments of profound disruption can yield unexpected insights and forge connections between disparate threads of one’s life and environment.
By synthesizing my personal story into larger symbolic references, I aim to open a space where individual experiences reflect broader human concerns. Moses Statue with Passion Flower remains deeply rooted in my own journey, yet it also serves as a prompt for collective contemplation—reminding us that personal upheavals can echo universal questions of resilience, identity, and hope.
2021
Oil, watercolor, ink, and water, photographic transfer on silk. Framed in aluminium.
13” × 10” / 34 × 26 cm
In Moses Statue with Passion Flower, I explore memory, transformation, and the interstitial spaces between crisis and catharsis. A billowing, dynamic form rendered in fluid greens dominates the composition, evoking both movement and emotional flux. At its center is a vestigial yellow core—a trace of a floral shape—that alludes to the fleeting presence of a passion flower. Delicate water stains permeate the silk, adding layers of texture and depth, and serving as tangible imprints of time and experience.
The genesis of this work is rooted in a deeply personal narrative. Faced with the harrowing task of securing my mother’s release from involuntary psychiatric confinement in the United States, I navigated a labyrinth of familial tensions and institutional barriers. This tumultuous journey, charged with feelings of helplessness and desperation, fuels the visual language of the piece.
The fluid green forms reflect my overwhelming tide of emotions and the sense of being engulfed by circumstances beyond my control. They suggest both the chaos of personal upheaval and nature’s indifference to human struggle. The residual yellow floral form symbolizes a delicate yet persistent beacon of beauty and resilience—referencing the passion flowers that unexpectedly overtook my garden wall upon my return to England. This phenomenon encapsulated the duality of nature’s allure and its relentless progression, irrespective of individual plight.
The water stains on the silk aren’t mere aesthetic choices; they are intentional marks signifying the seepage of experience into the very fabric of existence. They evoke tears, rain, and the relentless passage of time, blurring the line between physical and emotional realms, between what is deliberate and what is accidental.
Interwoven into this personal and natural tableau is the fleeting memory of a statue of Moses glimpsed through a car window in Washington Park. Arms uplifted and staff poised to draw water from stone, Moses becomes a powerful symbol of faith and the yearning for miracles in the face of overwhelming odds. This biblical allusion layers the piece with universal significance, bridging my personal narrative with collective archetypes of struggle and deliverance.
By blending oil, watercolor, ink, and photographic transfer on silk, I embrace an interplay of transparency and opacity, control and surrender. Silk’s luminous quality allows pigments to diffuse and merge organically, mirroring the way memories and emotions intertwine within the psyche.
Ultimately, Moses Statue with Passion Flower stands as a poignant meditation on the convergence of personal crisis and transcendent hope. It grapples with themes of vulnerability, resilience, and the transformative power of art to distill complex experiences into a resonant visual form. I invite a contemplative dialogue on how moments of profound disruption can yield unexpected insights and forge connections between disparate threads of one’s life and environment.
By synthesizing my personal story into larger symbolic references, I aim to open a space where individual experiences reflect broader human concerns. Moses Statue with Passion Flower remains deeply rooted in my own journey, yet it also serves as a prompt for collective contemplation—reminding us that personal upheavals can echo universal questions of resilience, identity, and hope.
2021
Oil, watercolor, ink, and water, photographic transfer on silk. Framed in aluminium.
13” × 10” / 34 × 26 cm
In Moses Statue with Passion Flower, I explore memory, transformation, and the interstitial spaces between crisis and catharsis. A billowing, dynamic form rendered in fluid greens dominates the composition, evoking both movement and emotional flux. At its center is a vestigial yellow core—a trace of a floral shape—that alludes to the fleeting presence of a passion flower. Delicate water stains permeate the silk, adding layers of texture and depth, and serving as tangible imprints of time and experience.
The genesis of this work is rooted in a deeply personal narrative. Faced with the harrowing task of securing my mother’s release from involuntary psychiatric confinement in the United States, I navigated a labyrinth of familial tensions and institutional barriers. This tumultuous journey, charged with feelings of helplessness and desperation, fuels the visual language of the piece.
The fluid green forms reflect my overwhelming tide of emotions and the sense of being engulfed by circumstances beyond my control. They suggest both the chaos of personal upheaval and nature’s indifference to human struggle. The residual yellow floral form symbolizes a delicate yet persistent beacon of beauty and resilience—referencing the passion flowers that unexpectedly overtook my garden wall upon my return to England. This phenomenon encapsulated the duality of nature’s allure and its relentless progression, irrespective of individual plight.
The water stains on the silk aren’t mere aesthetic choices; they are intentional marks signifying the seepage of experience into the very fabric of existence. They evoke tears, rain, and the relentless passage of time, blurring the line between physical and emotional realms, between what is deliberate and what is accidental.
Interwoven into this personal and natural tableau is the fleeting memory of a statue of Moses glimpsed through a car window in Washington Park. Arms uplifted and staff poised to draw water from stone, Moses becomes a powerful symbol of faith and the yearning for miracles in the face of overwhelming odds. This biblical allusion layers the piece with universal significance, bridging my personal narrative with collective archetypes of struggle and deliverance.
By blending oil, watercolor, ink, and photographic transfer on silk, I embrace an interplay of transparency and opacity, control and surrender. Silk’s luminous quality allows pigments to diffuse and merge organically, mirroring the way memories and emotions intertwine within the psyche.
Ultimately, Moses Statue with Passion Flower stands as a poignant meditation on the convergence of personal crisis and transcendent hope. It grapples with themes of vulnerability, resilience, and the transformative power of art to distill complex experiences into a resonant visual form. I invite a contemplative dialogue on how moments of profound disruption can yield unexpected insights and forge connections between disparate threads of one’s life and environment.
By synthesizing my personal story into larger symbolic references, I aim to open a space where individual experiences reflect broader human concerns. Moses Statue with Passion Flower remains deeply rooted in my own journey, yet it also serves as a prompt for collective contemplation—reminding us that personal upheavals can echo universal questions of resilience, identity, and hope.