I’m a firm believer that making art should be a liberating experience. After years of struggling to find my ‘art style,’ and thinking my art only had value if it was hyper realistic or highly marketable, I finally feel like I can just make art for the love of it. My goal when preparing Scattered was to demonstrate how widely the materials, subject matter, and detail of one person’s art can range – and that it’s okay!

When people look at my work, I hope it shows them how free and unrestricting art should be. Some people prefer to make more technical or detailed pieces, but it’s important to remember that there’s no obligation to do that. The perfectionist mindset is what stands between so many people and the amazing experience of creating. They think, “it’s not going to be good, so I might as well not try,” but who cares if your art fits the rules of what you consider to be ‘good’? Art should be made for yourself, whether it be to get energy out, to process difficult feelings, or just for fun. 

My favorite way to paint is by making a big mess everywhere, usually with acrylic or watercolor. I use lots of different mediums, but those two are my favorites because of how fun it is to layer them and work quickly. I find it most fun to start by choosing some colors, smearing them around or making some messy, vague shapes, and seeing what I can turn it into. I also really like using bright colors and contrasting them with content that can be ugly or gory, because I think it creates a fun dynamic between the subject matter and the art style. As for my inspiration, most of it comes from filmmakers like David Lynch and Stanley Kubrick, other visual artists like Hirohiko Araki and Vewn, and my personal life. I find myself most motivated to create when I realize how much I’ve been affected by other people’s work, hoping that I can give someone else that experience. Of course I feel good when someone tells me they like my work, but my favorite thing is when I hear my art inspired someone to create their own.