South Carolina 2

I created this work because I was so disheartened by the shootings that occurred at Mother Emanuel church in Charleston, South Carolina, in 2015. It is part of a series that memorializes each of the nine victims. I refused to use any somber colors in any of the images in this series because my work celebrates the vibrant lives that each of them lived.

I decided to use acrylic paint because it allowed me to use colors at their fullest intensity and because it dries quickly, compelling me to make immediate decisions about how to present my ideas. Additionally, this medium works well on paper, which I use as the picture plane in this series because it lends well to cutouts. So, the layered look of the acrylic on paper resonates with the way we live our lives in intertwined layers. We are all interconnected!