Back to My Roots

I was unemployed for the first time in my life, feeling uncertain about everything, and sequestered away from my friends and family during the pandemic. But being in quarantine also blessed me with ample time to learn and create, and as a result, my long-dormant creative nature began to reawaken.

This piece represents a return to my creative and artistic roots after years of neglect. It is also a nod to a classic self-portrait series of mine, in which I also appear half-naked with roots for legs. This piece is, in a way, a long-overdue continuation of that series. As I contemplated this piece and considered my roots, I realized that while some roots help to keep us connected to the things that are most important, other roots tie us down and bind us to the things we must leave behind. They dig in deep and hold firmly to the status quo. I have grown my fair share of those roots over the years. The axe symbolizes my acknowledgment that there are some roots that I must sever, even though I know it will be a difficult and frightening task. But in place of the severed roots, healthy, new roots will grow, and with any luck, they will find purchase in soil replete with creative nourishment in this incredible new world.

Thank you for joining me on this journey, my friends.

Technical Details: "Roots" rendered in Mandelbulb3D. Photographic components shot with Canon 5dmkii with studio flashes triggered by Pocket Wizards. Compositing in Photoshop.