Coral

60 x 40 inches, mixed media (acrylic paint, photo transfer assemblage, acrylic paint peels, posca, oil pastel) on canvas, 2024.

This painting was inspired by coral washed up on the beach in beautiful, laid-back Maui. It is one in a series of four paintings. This one is the largest. The others are 42 x 32.”

In this painterly exploration of coral, it is magnified to a monumental scale. Photographic elements are applied like paint color on the palette. It’s an invitation to get lost in the imagination and the natural world. I interchange nature's surfaces—stone, water, and life—so rock formations stand in for coral polyps, creating dreamlike imagery. Water and light breathe life into the composition with fluidity and movement. It is a remembrance of the resilience and fragility of life.