Public/Private Self

Make something that represents how you feel in public versus how you feel in private.

I act the same either way. Quiet, calm. Tired. A little zombie-like. I go at my own slow pace. People like to tell me that I’m “chill.”

But there’s always chaos going on in my head – largely negative things, worries, anxiety, stress. Something is always happening up in there, and most of the time it’s not good.

I started with the painting on the right. Pink, white, ocher, and orange acrylics on black gesso. I hadn’t painted in a year and a half before this. There’s a lot of tension.

After that dried, I took a closeup photo (to put on Instagram, haha) of the middle of the painting with my phone by titling the phone horizontally. I got the photo on the left. Relaxing and gentle. I think the photo is better than the painting, honestly, but it’s pretty cool that the “public” comes from the “private” both in the pieces and in real life.

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