These paintings are about capturing the shape shifting nature of memory using elements of folklore and magic. I wanted to use this thesis experience as a vehicle for healing and self transformation. I explored my Irish heritage through folk tales, faerie stories, and superstitions to create a deeper understanding of my connection to the world and its environments.

In Irish Mythology, faerie is not the tiny winged creatures we see in popular culture and modern day fairy-tales; but a liminal space that exists beyond the veil of our own reality. Faerie is a place that holds our fears and our desires. A place that I have used to reconstruct memories from my childhood that feel both safe and misunderstood.

I have utilized color and abstraction as a memory cue, that gives the viewer permission to be enchanted by the paintings. I am acting as both painter and folklorist, as I have taken ancient beliefs from my ancestors and blended them with stories of my own life. These paintings are Portals to the past and manifestations of the future and they are asking the viewer; what if faerie is real? And even if you don’t believe, can you believe in yourself?