Unnatural Disasters (an upcoming show)

(examples of past work evocative of the style my future show will follow)

In 2026-2028 I will be exploring the parallels between ecological collapse (extinction, self-destructive habitats) and political collapse (the erosion of American democracy), paired with the deeply personal emotional architecture of leaving my home country.

My artistic practice utilizes highly detailed watercolor painting as a meditative sanctuary and a vehicle for sharp political allegory. As an American born and raised within the United States, my work is a direct response to witnessing the systemic fracturing of my home country’s democratic institutions. Choosing to emigrate from the land of my birth to resettle in Europe, my paintings navigate the profound grief, disillusionment, and alienation of a self-imposed political exile. I look to the natural world as a complex allegorical language to critique the decline of American democracy and the psychological weight of uprooting oneself from a failing state.

The meticulous, time-intensive nature of my watercolor technique requires hundreds of hours of intense focus. Amidst the chaos of national polarization and the erosion of the societal structures I grew up believing in, this painstaking process serves as a necessary act of grounding. It is a silent, meditative escape where I can reclaim a sense of agency, meticulously constructing order and quiet sanctuary on the page. Through this slow, deliberate rendering, I explore the micro-textures of decay and resilience, capturing the tension between superficial national stability and underlying systemic rot.

Using flora, fauna, and environmental landscapes as allegories, my paintings examine the hubris of empire, the erosion of democratic soil, and the complex reality of seeking a fresh start in unfamiliar territory. By juxtaposing the pristine, controlled execution of traditional watercolor with themes of national decline, my work deconstructs the myth of American exceptionalism from the inside out—capturing the sorrow of leaving a homeland behind and the fragile hope of taking root anew.