Cradle of Life Painting

To me the process of painting and making is like a maze – or mycelium – it moves in all directions, sometimes reaching a dead end, sometimes finding a new source of energy. The journey is the important part of progression, constantly seeking new possibilities, fighting obstacles, devouring problems, and growing new “hyphae and mushrooms” that evolve and mutate as part of the evolution of learning and living, growing artistically and personally all the time. Inspired by the kingdom of Fungi, their invisible network of mycelium that entangles the world beneath our feet, as well as their fruit – mushrooms, I use subject metaphorically, linking it to connections between all people, places, and time. I draw inspiration from ancient mushroom imagery, folklore, and cults that admired worshipped, and respected this mighty and magical kingdom. During my daily walks, I imagine each step being a hypha – a link that creates maps and mosaics, a network that anchors me to this world; combined with memories of the past, present events, and plans, my work is the visual mosaic – a network of roads that connect it all. Segmented plane metaphorically works as doors or windows into another world, a world created through engagement with process and inspirations. Each layer is a segment of time, a memory, or encounter I identify with. Colour plays a big role in my work, I use it to capture ideas, evoke an emotional state and change the mood – it is a part of my identity that was formed and influenced by many cultures and places I have lived in. As well as network I’m using the mythological Tree of Life as a symbolic path, a ladder that connects the spiritual world, reality, and heavens. Various depictions and meanings can be found in most cultures, prehistoric imagery, and legends but they all connect with underlined spiritual significance, representation of life, rebirth, and a connector between worlds. Each work is a timely process involving multiple layers of colour washes, the addition of mediums, and the use of various tools to create textures that represent events or encounters. Sometimes I make my own tools to achieve personalized marks and textures; I paint, print, scrape, draw and explore the surface over a prolonged period until it clicks. Network lines are painted later – they grow slowly, in all directions like mycelium – working their way across the surface, breaking, and digesting until the final mushroom (the work) appears.