Art Gallery of the Soul

This summer has been a slow one.

My days were spent reading, watching classic films, and most of all! Painting.

Ever since I was a young girl, I always enjoyed my school art classes. We experimented with perspective, oil, pastels, and clay. I loved the activity so much that my mom enrolled my siblings and I into after school sessions together every Friday.

For Christmas, I was gifted seven canvases and I made it my mission to use them all. So without further ado, let me take you on a journey of my summer through art.

The first painting was The Love Cow. She is surrounded by primroses. I created this piece off the high of my first kiss. Summer was in bloom and everything felt possible. He was gentle and oh so affectionate. In that moment, I understood why people dedicated songs and tomes of literature to this meeting of the lips. This piece ended up as a gift to a cousin of mine.

Weary spawned after the realization I'd been ghosted. Silence and rain dominated those early summer days. I spent a few days buried in my disappointment, the sounds of Solange carrying me through. I got a good cry out while painting this. I wanted to give witness to my hurt, honor it, and then move on.

Zen came about during an even more emotionally turbulent time. I was in a stalemate with my mother and I needed something to calm my nerves. Lotuses were my flower of choice due to their association with resilience and spiritual awakening. Lots of whites and cool colors. Snakes are one of my favorite animals. They carry an unblinking air of mystery, danger, and transformation that is so fascinating to me. They're also super fun to draw!

The Cowboy was inspired by Beyoncé's Cowboy Carter. I wanted something that felt futuristic but grounded in the real world. I drew on the concept of cowboys vs. aliens to craft a classic beaming up scene. The peach background was meant to mimic a desert setting while maintaining an extraterrestrial feel. The titular cowboy was honestly just a self-insert. I had so much fun drawing her little boots!

 

Cosmic Yoni was honestly just for fun. I've always loved how fruit, flowers, and even caves resembled yonis. It's a beautiful artistic motif. I wanted to experiment with some darker pinks. The yoni is floating through a cotton candy cosmos, a playful yet regal interpretation of the divine.

Marian Roses is the physical manifestation of several dreams I've had over the past year. Statues of the Virgin Mary adorned with pink and white robes. The most recent iteration of the dream depicted her amongst a garden of roses. As a cradle Catholic, I spent most of my childhood battling my faith and its clash with my values. I ended up renouncing religion in high school, opting for a more eclectic path. Originally, I considered painting Stella Maris in her signature blue. However, I wanted to embrace the soft pinks and depict my Madonna as Black. 

Hocus Pocus is my final piece. A farewell to the summer as I prepare for autumn and its spookiness. This piece was also inspired by a dream I had a few weeks ago. A witch (who's meant to have braids but it's obscured due to the paint) and her loyal familiar—a black cat. Talking skulls float above the pair, their conversation left up to interpretation. Originally, I toyed with a scene of the witch and her cat riding a broomstick across the full moon. However, the sketches just didn't speak to me (I also didn't want to use up all my black paint for the night sky). I'm very happy with the colors and I hope realize the original full moon scene someday.

I hope you enjoyed this little gallery tour into my summer. Until next time!

XOXO, Michaela