​

Running With the Devil - Artist Statement

​

Named after the 1978 Van Halen song, 'Running With the Devil" is a collection of mixed media works consisting of pencil drawing, acrylics, collage and writing on canvas.The series is an act of storytelling, and memorializing some of the struggles I experienced during my teens and early twenties.

Growing up in rural Manitoba and attending Catholic school, the environment was very conservative. Like many other creative kids, I found a religious environment to be restrictive and oppressive.  I did not fit in with small town conformity, or the expectations of what it meant to be female in a conservative Christian environment. Dealing with issues like depression, anxiety, suicidal thoughts, sexual assault, bullying  and death of a close friend made all this harder. That and being told that the music I loved that helped me cope with all this was "the Devil".

​

Running With the Devil marks a return to what got me making art in the first place, which was drawing the rock and metal stars of the 80s and early 90s that I loved. . As I like to say "Jesus never saved me, but Rock n Roll sure did." I hope that by telling my stories I encourage others to share theirs as well.