Painted Stories, Spirited Bodies
As I paint directly on their skin, a conversation weaves through a delicate exchange between the participant and I. The participant’s willingness to be open feeds a creative current and reveals a story. The abstract and transient nature of the paint frees us from rigid and conventional definitions of the body and beauty. For a brief moment an expansive experience is sparked where the participant, the audience, and I can reconsider our judgments and impulses about the human body and our use of physical space. I approach the body not as a one-dimensional static object with typical “x” and “y” curves, but as a feeling and expressive energy. The abstract lines connect parts of the body that are not traditionally connected. Instead of enhancing the person or accentuating preferred parts of their body, I engage in an intentional celebration of the human figure, through the use of simple, colorful strokes, treating every surface as an equal part of a whole and fluid spirit.