I make art because for me, it feels like one of the truest ways that I can show up in the world.
The act of creating is me persisting - choosing tomorrow. Choosing to be here in this wildly wondrous existence can be hard, especially for some of us that simply feel too much. These new works within the "Moon to Morning" collection are about the consistency and new grace that comes with the sun rising in the morning. While dusk is my favorite time of day, the nighttime typically brings my most anxious thoughts and is when the "voice of giving up" comes to visit -- it can be beautifully heartbreaking and is quite a complex relationship.
For those that don't know, I've struggled with depression and anxiety for the past 5 years in a more intense way than I've known before. I’ve always been a person that felt every curve of the mountain; the highest highs and lowest lows. But in more recent history, those “feelings” disrupted my daily life and created a new kind of hurdle to manage. Growing up, situations felt difficult, but living in general never did. However, that was not the case (and still isn’t always the case) a few years back. Thanks to counseling, good transitions, unconditional Love, the steadfastness of my husband, time, sunny mornings, and much more, I've been able to manage my mental health better. However, it's something that is a part of me and I know will continue to be. There’s so much more to this story and I hope to tell more of it over time in a way that is true for past, present, and future me.
The “moon to morning” collection is a reflection on the relief that comes in the morning and reassurance in the darkness of evening that tomorrow will come. While the title of this collection encompasses the time span of the night, I realize that depression isn’t on a clock. Therefore, it’s really meant to represent the gap that exists in our minds sometimes between thoughts of fear and those of promise. Painting is one way that I get through those gaps.
I hope that this collection, and much of my art, allows you to rest in singular moments, share in thanksgiving to be here and to feel awake in your existence. On this earth, we bear the burden and brilliance of being able to only live one day at a time -- our lives are temporarily beautiful and eternally wondrous. So please, stay here, because tomorrow will come, no matter the darkness of night.
Lastly, I’ve built a playlist to accompany this collection - a mix-tape of songs that either inspired some of the piece titles or songs that I listen to reground me. Songs that when they play I feel like I can breathe in deeper; turn them up a little louder. Trust me that 15 year old me liked to lie on my floor and soak in all the sadness that Ben Gibbard would allow me to (*to file under things that made me think I was an Enneagram 4), but these are not those songs. While some might be more melancholy than others, they help me feel the weight of our existence and to not dull both sides of the sharpness of life; bright, but overwhelming. These songs are among my long list of favorites and keep me in the present and fully alive. I hope you enjoy —
xo,
Katie