Artist Statement

“Our mind is like a cloudy sky: in essence clear and pure, but overcast by clouds of delusions. Just as the thickest clouds can disperse, so, too, even the heaviest delusions can be removed from our mind.”

-Kelsang Gyatso

Overcast

Looking into the year that I lived in 2020, I was skeptical of it all. I was angry that we were letting this pandemic take over our lives and keep us afraid of the world. Like many, I lost my job due to the concerns for the safety of myself and others. Quarantine was long and brutal, and with no end in sight; I kept waiting. On my quiet block on the edge of town, it became lonely very fast. A cloud of isolation had begun to surround me and my space. I really started to believe that I was the only person left in Winona with how little I ever saw people. Even going to the store to get groceries or a change of scenery, no one felt real. I began to really hate the routine I had fallen into and I looked for a change. I stepped away from what I was doing to do something different. I started by looking for a job, and when I got a new job I got to take care of flowers and plants. This sprouted my passion and inspired my own collection. At my new job, I had met people who I connected with quickly and soon became great friends with. I discovered more about myself and developed new hobbies through these new friends. I had been clouded by all the frustration, sadness and loneliness for weeks. If I had not have pulled myself out from underneath that cloud; in search for something better, I would not be who I am today. I broke through to find the light in myself rather than waiting for something to come to me was how I will never lose sight of my happiness again.

Overcast is inspired from my own struggle and eventual gain from the pandemic that is still current. The large protrusions and angles coming from them represent how the isolation has created a barrier between myself and my happiness. In the middle of the structure includes a beacon. This is my metaphorical “happiness” that I had lost sight of. Around the beacon is a mirror where the viewer can reflect on themselves and read what brought my happiness. Overcast is intended to remind us to remember to never lose sight of their own happiness.