Butterfly - The girl in this painting held between the butterfly wings is bleeding pain and torn with the double standards on her wings. The wings hold words that contradict each other, for example: the left wing says “strong” while the right wing says “weak”, and so on using words like love, hate, faith, reality, betrayal, trust, etc. Butterflies are known for identical wings, and I liked using that concept in a new way.

During a phase in my life where I was having a difficult time with my PTSD, I took my pain and anger out on this canvas rather than my own body and mind. I let this girl, covered in dirt and mud, bleed for me. Her release, while not pretty, gave me hope that I could release in a less painful way.