one day in august

today is just a day in august.

it’s also my birthday.

generally, i keep the birthday fuss and brouhaha to a minimum. family + good friends, a glass of smooth whiskey, a perfectly cooked steak, and a white chocolate banana cake (and maybe a game of pickleball).

but not today. today is different.

today, i’m celebrating with art.

BECAUSE ART MAKES EVERYTHING BETTERER.

this newest compilation of art is work that for months has driven me into new creative avenues as i tested artistic limits and adopted elements of risk. you see, i’m not content to sit and stir, waiting for words and colors and textures to invite themselves over for drinks at their own leisure.

no, i will create even when i don’t know how. i will create, even if i ruin canvases or shatter neon lights on my studio floor. i will create and fail and let failure breed new ideas and new methods, as i break rules and smash norms in my evolution as an artist.

its then that i create my brightest and best work, art that i’m more proud of than i’ve ever been.

today i celebrate the demands for premium material and frequent runs to the art store in southend charlotte.

i celebrate and credit the pieces of myself that i precariously splattered onto canvases. the vulnerability, the thoughts, the untold stories from my own world and the worlds of others—memoirs penned with brushes, bold colors, scraped textures, and exposing words that mean something.

i’m celebrating  the silent midnight hours that passed as i sat deciphering what exactly was missing.

this is my best work.

selfishly, i want you to love it. i want you to gasp, breath caught in your chest, and feel the need for this art to resonate intimately inside you, like the lyrics to your favorite song or the familiar smell of briny beaches.

i want you to stop and stare.

i want you to love it.

happy birthday.