Artists Researched

I have explored the work of Jacqueline Bishop, whose paintings, installations, and works on paper probe the complex relationships between humans and nature's fragile systems. Bishop’s paintings, collages, and prints reflect her environmental activism, using landscapes, trees, animals, and ecological commentaries to highlight the human impact driving species extinction. Her project “Hidden Diaries” resonates with my concept of using found and foraged sculptural pieces of wood, inscribing them with encaustic paint to preserve their natural beauty.

I have been inspired by Gwenneth Miller, particularly her 1997 master’s portfolio and exhibition titled “Sublime Spaces,” which incorporates natural imagery, wood, organic materials, and the human form. Miller’s work reflects an ecofeminist sensibility grounded in nurture, reconciliation, and catharsis. It embodies a caring, spiritual connection with ecology and the environment, emphasizing the interconnectedness of humans and nature. As Miller notes, “It is a wordless sublime that propagates unification with the timelessness and universality of nature as cosmos.” Her concepts resonate with my art, highlighting the underlying understanding and kinship among all living things.

I have researched various performance artists and identified with the work of Olivier de Shagazan. In a gesture of desperation, he questions organic life by covering his body in clay, gradually disfiguring himself as he buries himself in the material. His piece Transfiguration allows him to shift into an alternative selfhood; although disturbing, he transforms from half-man to half-beast. I relate to de Shagazan’s performance in the context of our ancient ancestors using ochre, mud, clay, or charcoal as body paint or decoration in ritual performances or shamanistic activities. I have used charcoal from burnt trees as a metaphor for our burning planet, creating a connection with the “spirit” of the natural world and the organic life forms of our biosphere. Through sound, ritual, meditation, and charcoal markings, I tie my performance to symbolic action and spiritual essence.

I have drawn inspiration from the Greco-Roman Egyptian Fayum funerary portraits dating from 30 BC to the mid-3rd century AD.  These were painted on wood panels using encaustic (a mixture of beeswax and dammar resin) or egg tempera, allowing them to be preserved for thousands of years. These portraits express not only the fragility of life but also how humanity's past and history have directly impacted our present and will further influence our future.