Born out of a love of home while also being confined to the spaces we call home, this ongoing series of paintings imagines idyllic home settings floating in that in-between space of pre and post-pandemic. Personally, my home is my refuge and as it has become my workspace as well, I fill it with beautiful things that make me feel cozy as well as inspired. I find beautiful spaces so comforting, but when it's unwise, inconsiderate, and even dangerous to leave them, we find ourselves longing for spaces out of our reach.
Visiting the North Shore of Oahu was an experience I won't soon forget. It felt like coming home to a place I'd never seen before. Seeing Hawaii and being surrounded by people who looked like me prompted an exploration into my own Pacific Islander roots. What does it mean to have a home you've never seen? Why am I so drawn to a climate that my ancestors tamed? Why do my grandfather's stories of the Philippines trigger my own memories? These are questions I've been exploring through my natural tendency to draw certain things, use certain colors, and depict plants and nature the way I do.