Essence of Girl

With this painting, named Essence of Girl, being my most recent, I combined all of my ideas and techniques to create a piece to round out the mini-series. Continuing my exploration of girlhood, I made a scene of a girl walking in nature with her cat while peeling oranges. This piece was created as a diptych on two 15 x 60-inch canvases, making the character lifesize so the viewer feels like she is standing right in front of them. The figure itself is transparent, almost ghost-like, expressing a dissociative feeling. She has bright, rosy, almost bloodied cheeks and joints, expressing her playful childhood and innocence. Being from Florida, I wanted to show what my childhood looked like, barefoot, exploring the neighborhood, surrounded by fruit trees, and snacking on an orange. Oranges are a common theme in my pieces, something I often ate in my youth, and fruit meant to tear open with your hands and share amongst friends. She wears youthful, summery clothing like jean shorts and a flowy cotton shirt, her hair free-flowing. Like in the other paintings, her cat is with her, expressing her playful innocence and expressive femininity. The paper feature in this piece is decorated with elegant orange blossoms, which represent purity and new beginnings. With this latest addition of a serene blue, the character has fully embraced her past and is walking towards her future. Although each part holds a solid meaning to me, I embrace the viewer's interpretations and bring their own emotions into each element.