Artist Statement

I make artwork about how it felt to leave my childhood religion, Mormonism. To start my process I read my father’s journals and record my own memories. From these, I pull symbols and themes to use in my artwork, such as the seer stones Joseph Smith used to translate the Book of Mormon, or burlap, which is the wallpaper for many Mormon churches. I am interested in the life cycles of spirituality and interpret my leaving the church as the end of my father's journey into the church. I often use circles in my paintings to represent a god figure, and also work as a reference to cycles and eternity. I want this work to offer people at any stage of any internal journey the space to reflect and connect with their own spirituality.