The Start Of A New Day

In life everyone is faced with the same decision: What am I going to do with my life?

It's an easier question to answer for some, less so for others. After graduating in 2024, I knew I wanted to continue pursuing my art career, but the steps were not exactly clear. The world becomes your oyster and with that comes a lot of free will and important decisions.

I continued working on commissions and exhibiting through 2024 and into 2025, but I quickly faced the reality of burn out. That feeling of wanting to create but feeling stuck, having ideas but no energy to make them and, as more time passes, the worry grows — What am I going to do?

The key to making things happen isn’t waiting for the perfect moment, you just have to start. That said, I spent the year slowly developing a plan of action. I needed something to get the ball rolling and get me back into the swing of creating. Through this year of relaxed research and experimentation, I wasn't concerned about creating "perfect" work or anything profound - This turned out to be just what I needed. My goal was to once again find my feet and see clear direction.

By no longer caring about failure or weak concepts, I found a freedom that was motivating. I gave myself the space and grace to explore ideas, even if they lead me to nowhere in particular, and by doing so cumulated a backlog of projects that excite me and I hope will excite those who see them too.

Just in time for the New Year, I found myself refreshed and gravitating towards creating and painting daily. Patiently and without judgment, letting myself find my path once again.

I think it's only fitting that on this start of a new year, and start of a new day for me, my first painting of 2026 was of the humble breakfast item: porridge oats! To me, this simple painting represents the humble beginnings of a new chapter for me.