Drum study series: oil and colored pencil on board. 16-18″ diameter. 2026

In 2023, I became interested in the overlap—and differences—between Northwest Coast Formline principles and the ways flowers seem to follow similar structures, even in their natural, raw existence. Over the past three years, I’ve been moderately obsessed with the disparity in support for gendered labor, particularly in the arts. My research, writing, and peer-led critique have prompted me to interrogate my own perceptions of the feminine and the masculine, and to consider how respect for these energetic dualities has both served and harmed our human experience—shaping how we value not only art, but one another and the larger world.

I was initially nervous to begin drawing and painting florals, as I felt they were too “safe” and “cliché.” I have long operated under the assumption that “real artists” must say and do more than depict what they see—that this is a kind of moral obligation. By naming these judgments, however, I became aware of the parallel judgments I held toward the expression of my own femininity. While I utilize my so-called “feminine” qualities and strengths in my daily life, I have consistently self-monitored and censored them, assuming they must be carefully managed so as not to disrupt my position or any potential access to power.

I realized that I was not only free to paint what I wished—even if it came naturally, without force or struggle—but that I most certainly should paint flowers. My relationship to these often unnamed species of botanicals has since come to mirror my relationship with parts of myself I’ve learned to hide or suppress: softness, delicacy, slowness, beauty, care.

For this circular series, I set out to create studies that would eventually be applied to deer-hide drums. Historically, Tlingit drums are painted with formline clan crests and supernatural beings. In the context of our relatively recent disconnection from—and diminished acknowledgment of—our plant kin, I began to wonder what it might mean to paint flowers on drums. What energy might enter a space when the voices of botanicals are invited to contribute to our songs?

Please contact me for purchase inquiry