In my work, I covet images of luxury interiors and architectural designs, fantasizing what my life would be like living in these staged photographs. Out of these fantasizes, I imagine what my identity would be based on the flattened space. What color palette would I surround myself with?
I examine the formal qualities of these images, appreciating their space, colors, textures, and designs. These qualities become the starting point for my paintings. I simplify the image, often creating one or two studies to transform the formal elements into abstractions, before painting on a floated panel. The floated panel emphasizes the flatness of the surface, referencing the flatness of the physical space represented in the photograph, while also feeling architectural by coming off the wall.
Through this simplification process, I am not only breaking down the formal qualities but the content of these images. As they break down, they all start to look the same while boasting their own “one-of-a-kindness.” I question what the fetishization of these photographs means to me. I started collecting them as ideas for my own “dream home,” but have since become disillusioned with these staged and idealized images of homes. I realize that this pristine depiction of a lifestyle is not conducive to the realities of life.
These curated presentations of the home reveal more about how we wish to be perceived than about our actual lifestyles. Though I have a deep love for photographs of interior design, architecture, and functional space, I am also examining them critically. I am in a space of contradiction. I love collecting the images, but I am also rejecting the absurdity of them.