Artist Statement

As questions and frustrations with my faith have mounted, my work has become increasingly more specific to religion and Christianity as opposed to the broader concepts and explorations of spirituality in general. By addressing Christian principles and standards as they particularly relate to my experience as a Latter-Day Saint, my work is predominantly metaphoric--directly referencing verses of scripture, materials and items associated with the Mormon faith. As divulged in the work, my critical contemplation of Mormon practices explores the confusing yet consistent balance between bitterness and tenderness, devotion and defection--lending itself to an inexplicably loving condemnation. By exploring the contentious relationship between human nature and spiritual nature, I investigate my own beliefs and truths by using the one thing that I know for certain: I make art. Thus, I am using my artistic practice to explore the authenticity and endurance of my own faith.

To say that my work is about "spirituality and religion" could mean a thousand things. For me, it means longing for--and mourning the loss of--a faith I no longer possess. It is this feeling of spiritual homesickness and constant internal struggle that drives my current work. My ambition is to instigate discussions and conversations on the doubts and struggles that accompany a committed religious or spiritual practice--struggles which I can only hope are not specific to me alone.