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Description

24 x 36 inch watercolor painting.

This piece explores the feelings of intense anger I’ve been dealing with in the last few months. I’ve been trying to hold it all in so I don’t hurt anyone’s feelings, but that only leads to having an outburst later and hurting people I love (usually the people I wasn’t even angry at in the first place). This piece is about learning to channel my anger in healthy ways, and acknowledging that anger is a natural and justified feeling. Here’s the artist’s statement I wrote if you’re interested in the meaning behind the piece:

A Gyrfalcon attacks a White-tailed Ptarmigan midair against the backdrop of Denali National Park, Alaska. When I began this painting, I originally considered the ptarmigan as a self-portrait of my grief and helplessness in the face of the pandemic and political tension. However, as my feelings of sadness began to be overcome by anger, I realized that the falcon was the true reflection of my inner state. Feeling that my voice was not being heard by my peers, I felt anger that begged to be realized. I felt jealous of the falcon, for whom outbursts of aggression are a necessary part of life. Painting myself as this falcon became a channel to manifest my rage in a non-hurtful way. Even when I hold back on expressing my anger to protect my relationships, this falcon is within me, proclaiming that I do have a voice of power even when I remain quiet for the sake of others. My desire to be heard and assert my anger is an intrinsic part of being human, just as natural as the falcon’s desire to plunge its talons into prey.

Description

24 x 36 inch watercolor painting.

This piece explores the feelings of intense anger I’ve been dealing with in the last few months. I’ve been trying to hold it all in so I don’t hurt anyone’s feelings, but that only leads to having an outburst later and hurting people I love (usually the people I wasn’t even angry at in the first place). This piece is about learning to channel my anger in healthy ways, and acknowledging that anger is a natural and justified feeling. Here’s the artist’s statement I wrote if you’re interested in the meaning behind the piece:

A Gyrfalcon attacks a White-tailed Ptarmigan midair against the backdrop of Denali National Park, Alaska. When I began this painting, I originally considered the ptarmigan as a self-portrait of my grief and helplessness in the face of the pandemic and political tension. However, as my feelings of sadness began to be overcome by anger, I realized that the falcon was the true reflection of my inner state. Feeling that my voice was not being heard by my peers, I felt anger that begged to be realized. I felt jealous of the falcon, for whom outbursts of aggression are a necessary part of life. Painting myself as this falcon became a channel to manifest my rage in a non-hurtful way. Even when I hold back on expressing my anger to protect my relationships, this falcon is within me, proclaiming that I do have a voice of power even when I remain quiet for the sake of others. My desire to be heard and assert my anger is an intrinsic part of being human, just as natural as the falcon’s desire to plunge its talons into prey.