STATEMENT

Supa Power (self-portraits)

Left-handed and right-handed drawings

2022

Last March while taking a morning walk with my husband, I slipped on black ice and fractured my right wrist. This would require surgery. My right hand, which was my dominant hand, was now non-functional. The idea of being away from my art practice while I healed felt unacceptable. Drawing on my iPad appeared to be the best option considering my physical limitations. Working with my less dominant hand was awkward at first. I felt more like an observer than the participant while I worked, but I quickly adapted. A series of self-portraits emerged, a way to process my experience. I was fascinated by the accouterments that marked my progress from heavy cast, to plastic splint to wrist strengthening exercises turning a hammer. I continued the series using my right hand when my wrist was strong enough, although now my poses expressed not my burden, but my renewed sense of empowerment and humor.