ARTIST STATEMENT
What to do?
This diptych explores the relationship between circumstances and possibilities through two versions of the same character. Though presented across separate canvases, the figures are not two different people. They are reflections of the same individual.
The darker figure on the left, exists as a shadow representing the unseen weight a child may carry: uncertainty, isolation, fear, instability, and circumstances they never had the opportunity to choose. Its restrained expression reflects how hardship is not always visible. Pain can exist quietly, beneath an exterior that appears composed.
The lighter figure on the right, represents possibility. It is not a version of the character that has been “fixed,” nor does it erase what came before. Instead, it reflects what can emerge when a young person is given safety, care, opportunity, and the freedom to grow beyond their circumstances.
Together, the two works acknowledge that our experiences remain a part of us, but they do not have to determine who we become. Created in support of children in need, this diptych is ultimately a reflection on the potential that exists within every child, even when that potential is obscured by circumstances beyond their control.