Anticipation

This painting looks at how Marilyn Monroe was glorified and sold as a symbol of beauty, femininity, and vulnerability. I painted her in a moment of self-reflection to show the conflict between who she was and the image society pinned on her.

Those expectations constrict; they shape an identity and often distort it. The piece is personal to me because I know what it feels like to carry outside pressure and still want to accept myself.

It reads as a comment on our obsession with perfection and the cost of keeping up the front.