Andrea Grant

On the politics of visibility within a gendered illness: I inhabit a female body that in its recovered, nourished form adheres to certain Western standards of beauty—does this necessarily diminish the impact of my work? I linger on whether it is irresponsible, even narcissistic, to produce a self-portrait as a radical act of love. But even these pieces are not strictly self-portraits—while it is my body that is torn between seduction and humility, the faces grant no clues to identification. On the quotidian as content: I examine spaces of rest and have noticed how the everyday becomes incredibly intimate, even encouraging a voyeuristic gaze on my subjects. I appreciate abstract backgrounds; most striking to me is an isolated, unresolved reflection of tenderness and love as suspended moments despite their surroundings. Layers make perfect sense in transcending temporal hurt through beauty, in allowing for rearrangement and reflection. On time and the synesthetic experience: I am aware of the threat of re-emergence. Twenty years down the line, two weeks ago, I fear that a harsh enough challenge (to my character or to my spirit) will coerce me into the comfort of harmful coping mechanisms. This disorientation in time  is compounded by a synesthetic experience and explains my coupling of recent works with specific songs that communicate with the work and allow for a more immersive experience. I find comfort in what it means to hold hurt and to create with it.

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