01/06/2026
I was incredibly honored to once again receive the Silver Medal Award at the National Exhibition at the this past weekend. It’s a privilege to have been selected for this exhibition in the first place—I am in the company of so many artists I deeply admire—but an even greater one to be awarded recognition for this painting that tried and challenged my mind and brush. The exhibition was judged by the wonderful , whose work and particular use of light I have long admired. It was very rewarding to hear him call out so many of the careful choices in made in this painting.
Mary’s Roses is, in essence, a painting about motherhood. These roses grew outside my first real studio, where Mary, the landlady, served as a sort of creative matriarch, providing space and community for so many artists over the years. But in a broader, more biblical sense, Mary also refers to the feminine mysteries, a secret world of interiority. I wanted a feeling of cascading, beautiful, wild abundance that nevertheless, falls almost entirely in shadow. The world beyond is bathed in sunlight. A small passage of shared value, both literal and metaphorical, connects them. We become intimately acquainted with these two worlds during pregnancy. But I have found that this acquaintance continues during motherhood. The wide, sunlit world that used to be my home sometimes feels like a far away land now, as I wipe a sticky hands and bandaged skinned knees and listen to sweet, sleepy sighs during sleepless nights.
It is interesting that this particular painting is the one that received an award I was, once again, not there to accept, home in bed with two tired kids during my husband‘s absence. The last time I received a silver medal, I was in early labor with my first son.
I find it difficult to hold these two parts of myself simultaneously, the part that creates art and the part that creates life. They are deeply interdependent, and they are often in conflict. In both the joys and the sorrows—they shape me, willing or not. ❤️
The evening unfolded very differently depending on your location… 😅
I am beyond lucky to have a wonderful group of art
