I’ve been reclusive when it comes to my body paint and body art career. I had to go within and find how and in what ways is this craft still feeding me. The past year or so I have turned to music as a form of creativity and though it serves me well, there’s also nothing like creating visual stories using my intuition, paint and gems as my medium of choice.
I’ll tell you a story. I once had an opportunity to have a feature for my alma Mater’s campus magazine at Hampton University. I discussed with the woman I got in contact with about doing a feature on my artwork and my showcase at the time with Brooklyn tea (which the co-owner is a HU grad like myself). However, after interviewing me briefly she chose to make the fact that I used body paint as a outlet during my postpartum era as the focal point of the story. I would consider myself open minded yet, the way she spinned the narrative made me uneasy. Postpartum, and postpartum depression isn’t to be taken lightly and I know she did not lead with any sort of maliciousness but it did not resonate with me deeply. My story is something that I hold sacred and after sharing the draft with my mom and some close friends, I decided to clip the feature altogether.This is where personal integrity for me came into play. I figured if anyone is to tell it. It should be me.
Body paint ushered me into a transformation I did not know was to come. A portal was opened in me that left me extremely vulnerable to the point that transmuting had become my only outlet. It kept me from spiraling into darkness. Although I did have my bout with the dark knight of the soul, self portraiture was a way of solace during those times especially. If you have followed my journey over the years you can see, mostly through social media, as I would camouflage myself often into my surroundings. (You can view my camo’s here) Looking back, I guess it was a way to express my feelings of loneliness, isolation and a sense of feeling unseen. I would practice with different backdrops as well experimenting with colors, shape and forms. It gave me joy to see the outcomes. I often would go to my daughters crib and check on her with a full beat from head to toe, or torso! She would often look up with wondering eyes but she still knew it was her mommy. As time went on, I strayed from sharing my body in that way on social media. I went private for a year or so because I realized this was a sacred exchange for people who can understand it. I started to become more self conscious. People would ask me if I still body painted and I didn’t know what to say. I never really stopped, my craft just shifted. I saw it more as a healing modality not just for me but for others. Thus is why I have created sessions with people who find the act of getting paint as a special interaction,one where you have to be open to my form of intuition. I also began formulating immersive exhibitions (Skin tight) where I would provide stations for people to indulged in my craft as I do. From when I first started body painting friends and myself in 2015, I see how the development as expanded into something totally different. I wanted to create worlds where my people felt empowered in a this new “Shell” of a skin.These cinematic worlds have morphed into so much more. I will be using this platform to delve back into transmuting, this time not from a place of survival but from a spirit of healing and rebirthing one’s self. Taking ownership of what already mine.I am excited to relearn myself in this time as I am getting older and so much change has occurred since my early twenties.It will be interesting to revisit my old patterns with fresh eyes. I hope you’ll follow along.
Today I am on a high from face painting for my friends event (Afrotopia) where I met some incredible souls who allowed me to freestyle on them. below are some photos from the event and also photos from today where I used left over scrap gems to make a reflective armor. I remember now the fulfilling feeling I would get after documenting myself. It’s the thrill of getting the right image before I toss them in the trash or wash the paint away down the drain. I hope you feel inspired by these images and find what gives you your spark, whatever that may be.
Todays session
