Cracked Open (Butterfly Piece) 13, 2020

12 x 12 inches

Mixed media on mirror, wood panel

Cracked Open (Butterfly Piece) is an exploration of how mental illness affects self-image.

We often believe the worst of ourselves and chide ourselves for not being enough. This piece illustrates that guilt; the viewer sees their image as distorted and dirtied in the mirror, and becomes obsessed with the missing pieces of their own reflection, exploring the angles of their broken-ness.

All it takes is a backwards step to reveal that the reflection the viewer sees is just that-- a reflection, an image holding no physical weight in itself. Coming through the cracks are butterflies, the symbol of metamorphosis and beauty, to remind the viewer of their true physicality, a truth that others see, but what they cannot see themselves--that we all are beautiful, whole and complete.