In my paintings, I create microcosms that integrate visuals gathered from my immediate surroundings, memories from lived-in environments, impressions of architecture, and indications of my flesh and body. I include in my work references to familiar and pervasive Western folklore that often become deeply ingrained in the psyche from childhood. I comment on the alluring aesthetic qualities of these stories while critiquing their more harmful properties. One such theme is the misogyny reflected in the willful romanticism and idealization of gender roles and female bodies against the backdrop of intoxicating and mystical landscapes and architecture. I recognize the influence of these depictions in many aspects of my life and aim to evaluate the lingering effects while repurposing their aesthetics and contexts. I explore the theme of lost innocence as it relates to coming to terms with the dangers of internalizing these stories by fusing contrasting personal images that represent my particular pre vs. post innocence stages. Parades of confetti commingle and contend with deep water-colored, foreboding orbs. Additionally, by employing architectural motifs from environments that I have experienced, both real and fictional, I explore notions of home, belonging, and permanence as they relate to my own body and the physical spaces it inhabits.