In 2021, a series of events happened in my life that were very difficult for me. They ripped open old emotional wounds that felt like they would never stop bleeding.
The “good” part was that this pain was a spark that inspired me to finally do several things - things that I’d long wanted to do but I didn’t give myself permission for one reason or another.
One of these things was to reclaim my identity as an artist, and as part of this, go back to painting portraits, especially self-portraits.
This painting was the first; I painted it in August/September, September coinciding with springtime in Chile, where I was living at the time. I call the painting Reverdecer," which in Spanish means "renew", "make lush, green, and beautiful again", "revive,” "to come back to life,” etc. The title was inspired by a beautiful song by Perotá Chingó with the same title, which was recommended to me by my guitar teacher, Tita Avendaño.
This painting reminds me to keep going, no matter what difficult situations, difficult people, or difficult emotions come my way.
I send love and “reverdecer” magic to everyone viewing this painting - remember that every day is a new beginning and a new opportunity to make your dreams come true.