This completed 36” x 48” oil on canvas painting is of my Grandmother Beverly. I initially set out to do this project as a way of processing my feelings regarding her decline as a result of dementia. My original plan for this work was for it to exist within an installation that would feature different interactive elements. The elements were: a slowly changing projected environment adjacent to the painting displaying places that I associate with my Grandma, a wheelchair for the viewer to sit in so they could empathize with her. Additionally there was to be a pedestal of glass candies that my Grandparents have had in all of the different places they have lived, standing out as a representative token.
Due to the necessary restrictions of COVID-19, I cannot display this work as an installation. Of note, my Grandmother succumbed to natural causes, thus this project now honors her.