Statement

My multidisciplinary art practice is informed by my experiences as a queer artist raised in rural communities throughout the traditional land of the Mekap'sk Mi'kmaq Band (northern peninsula) of Ktaqmkuk (Newfoundland). Through material manipulation I transform my rural narrative, queer tensions, and emotions into a visual form.

Newfoundlanders and Labradorians have operated within precarious systems of support for generations, and have honed the ability to make, make do, and to mend. My practice aims to be a cognizant extension of these pillars, and to pay homage to the resilience of my family, my home, and my territory. My sculptures, paintings, and textile installations consider the various perceptions of rurality and craft I have encountered. I challenge the exclusion of rural lived experiences within the contemporary art canon by creating work that portrays moments of time from my upbringing in rural Newfoundland.

Queering the spaces I have once lived has become central to my practice. I lean into subtle exuberance to communicate my relationship to the rural mundane - a queer child drawn to sparkle and shine amongst a sea of glimmering capelin, an urge to create, to indulge, and to explore. I seek catharsis through earnest contemplation of memory and mourning - works are influenced by home, informed by insecurity, and softened by time and understanding. I draw from specific points in my past that evoke feelings of guilt, discomfort, vulnerability, and joy in order to deconstruct and resolve the lingering tensions they hold.