Resistance

Acrylic, graphite, and pastel on canvas.

40x30"

“Resistance” is a 30 x 40-inch mixed media painting from the DIG: Excavating the Self series. This work captures the turbulent emotional landscape of a defining decade—an abstract portrait of a woman holding her ground while everything shifts around and within her.

The foundation of the piece is a subtle grid, composed of soft pastels and muted tones—symbolizing the layered structure of identity, memory, and inherited patterns. Over this calm underlayer, bold lines of magenta, black, brown, and teal erupt across the surface. They twist, collide, and spiral, creating a dynamic tension between order and chaos, clarity and overwhelm.

During this chapter of life, the artist faced the loss of both parents within seven months, navigated a crumbling marriage and fertility challenges, and simultaneously rose as a strong leader and mentor in her professional life. Resistance reflects not only the emotional upheaval of that time, but the quiet, determined power it took to endure, rebuild, and begin breaking generational cycles.

The composition asks the viewer to consider their own seasons of resistance: when they’ve held their boundaries, broken their silence, or pushed against the weight of expectation.

This artwork is for those who’ve stood firm in the face of heartbreak and transformation—and emerged not untouched, but unbroken.