This September, I had the pleasure of exhibiting Bubblegum Girls, a solo show of my paintings, at Secret Studio in Columbus, Ohio.
Bubblegum Girls brings together colorful paintings inspired by seemingly unrelated worlds: Depression-era photography, dying shopping malls, vintage paper dolls, layered abstract narratives. At their heart, these works explore memory, femininity, loss, and resilience—and the ways we continually reinvent ourselves within the worlds we inhabit… places that no longer exist, images that feel strangely familiar, stories that deserve to be told differently, and, of course, weird shit. These paintings are my way of rearranging those fragments into something new.
One of the most meaningful parts of the exhibition was returning to Columbus and spending time with old friends! The majority of my 20s were spent tromping the Columbus beat. Those were messy, fun, formative years when I was figuring out who I am and what kind of life I wanted to make for making. So much of the person I am today took shape there, surrounded by people who hold me up and cheer me on.
There’s something tender and a little bittersweet about returning to a place that saw so many earlier versions of yourself, especially when the people who knew those versions are still there to welcome you back and hold you close. For a show so deeply rooted in memory, nostalgia, bright days, dark-ish content, and the ways we carry our past into the present, I couldn’t have imagined a more fitting place to share these paintings as a complete set.
A huge thank-you to Secret Studio and the indomitable Amy Turn Sharp for hosting the show and to everyone who stopped by throughout September. It meant so much to share these paintings with you. Until next time, Columbus! 💗🫧
