artist statement | CV
For much of my career, painting has happened in front of an audience.
As a live performance artist, I learned to trust instinct, movement, and the energy of the moment. There is no opportunity to overthink a brushstroke when a painting is unfolding in minutes. You make the mark, respond to it, and keep moving. That experience has shaped the way I approach everything I create.
Today, my studio practice in Asheville, North Carolina, gives that same energy a different place to live.
My studio paintings are not a departure from my performance work. They come from the same philosophy: trust the process, embrace imperfection, and allow the painting to reveal itself. I begin with color, movement, texture, and emotion rather than a predetermined outcome. Layers are added, removed, covered, exposed, and allowed to interact until something begins to emerge.
Since establishing my working studio and gallery in Asheville, my work has become increasingly influenced by the creative energy and natural surroundings of Western North Carolina. My abstract landscapes, color-driven paintings, and ongoing Dazie series explore optimism, resilience, movement, and the unexpected beauty that can come from letting go of control.
Whether I am creating a painting in minutes before hundreds of people or spending days working alone in my studio, the underlying idea remains the same.
I just paint.
I paint to discover what happens when instinct takes over. I paint because a single brushstroke can carry energy, emotion, memory, and possibility. And I paint because I believe art does not need to be complicated or explained before it can be felt.
My live work taught me how to paint without fear. My studio work is teaching me how far that freedom can go.