somedays i'm not ok     2019
acrylic paint on wall ~15 ft x ~13 ft
Truckstop Gallery
Minneapolis, MN

Just as I do not see all of you, you do not see all of me. I show up each day, but you don’t see all that is inside. I cannot escape myself. Each moment I move through this world, I react to every feeling, sight, sound, touch, and taste experienced both consciously and unconsciously. Every day I exist. Every day I work to keep my mental health in check.  Inside myself it can be hard to sift through the internal allowing myself to feel.  Some days are good and some days are not. There are many little things I do to keep my anxiety and depression bearable. These manifest in my drawings in ways I do not understand. My drawings are my minds way of release. They are a way for me to embrace an uncomfortable realm within myself. They are a way for my inner feelings and anxieties to explode on to the paper safely. My drawings help me exist in the overwhelm.

 

My installation work focuses on challenging metal health stigmas, trying to create a more honest and earnest experience by diving deeper into what I suppress in daily life. I know I am not alone. I know many things get lost in the shuffle. Not addressed, covered by layers and layers. I believe that behind every person’s exterior there is an internal struggle of some sort and I hope my work ever so slightly helps someone else know they are not alone.