Watercolor meets digital with a modern Rorschach twist  |  2020 
Project in-progress; images shown here reflect the creative process

"Inner Life" (2019) was birthed from my love of nature.  I began by photographing subjects and scenes, and then used digital tools to manipulate the photos into mirrored, kaleidoscopic imagery. Bold and mysterious, these images can be perceived as optical illusions that evoke a sense of pareidolia, in that they prompt the viewer to continuously re-examine their perceptions in an effort to make meaning. 

The artwork stems from a vivid interplay of intellect and emotion, combined with the workings of my conscious and subconscious. In this light, "Inner Life" can be viewed as a dialogue between the inner life of the artist and her surroundings, reflecting a desire to reorder the elements of the external world. 

Re//Integrated: Putting pieces back together  |  2019-2020

Traumatic experiences can cause a disruptive fragmentation of the self and a sense of disembodiment. These images depict states of being that involve interactions between the parts of the whole. 

"Lost In Time" is an evolving project that began as a personal quest to take portraits of my grandmother, Josephine F. Caruso ("Jo"), who recently turned 96 years old. I wanted to capture the many sides of Jo -- her moods, her expressions, her postures, etc. Moreover, I wanted to explore several questions. What is it like to have lived nearly a century? How do we grapple with our dignity and self-respect as we age, and is an existential crisis inevitable? What becomes of our space? How do the elderly hold space for themselves, and for others?

During my portrait sessions with Jo, I roamed around her home and snapped shots of objects and scenes that evoke powerful memories from my childhood. Jo has lived in the same house for over 40 years, and many of those years were spent with her late husband, Anthony T. Caruso ("Tony"). These photographs are a tribute to him, as well. 

​"Lost In Time" speaks to the profound relationships that I (we) have with even the most seemingly trivial, everyday possessions that belong to the people we love.