THE WARRIOR WITHIN (Commissioned)
THE WARRIOR WITHIN, 2022
Acrylic/Mixed Media on Canvas
24x30in
COMMISSIONED by a client in Singapore
More than her likeness, I tried to the best of my ability to capture this 3 year-old girl’s fearlessness and tenacity, as if seeing her through her mother’s eyes, and weave all that love that emanates from a mother’s words.
This artwork is an intersection of Indian and Nigerian culture and celebrates the story of an inspiring little girl through symbols of courage and strength. Despite her story of healing and resilience, she is a burst of sunshine who is loved deeply and brings immense joy to the world around her.
This project was exactly what I needed, back when I was neck deep in a slew of deadlines, never ending documents, phone calls and meetings. To say that it was a daunting time of some major adulting and life-changing decisions is a complete understatement, but it has unfolded into yet another plot twist about gargantuan and simultaneous pivotal undertakings to date.
With her wild curly hair, spunk, a big love for the world, honey brown skin and, as her mom calls it, ‘big brown eyes with the longest Disney eyelashes’, my client wanted a painting where her daughter could see herself in it everyday. To create a tapestry of their family’s cultural background and heritage, these are the elements that have been woven in to bring this 3 year-old’s character to life one brushstroke at a time:
1. a child’s choli with a sweetheart neckline,
2. Nigerian symbols of strength and courage, and
3. Rani pink, a very rich and powerful shade specific to the Indian culture.
She has soldiered through a rough ordeal at such a tender age and bears the scars of that trying time to this day. The thing about scars is when you give it time and the proper conditions for healing, the pain and the intensity of the mark goes away, but it remains to be a story forever etched on your skin.
Most days, I really just want to jump into one of those green Super Mario warp zone pipes and get whisked to that moment where I can leap gleefully onto the flagpole. But I’ve always believed in synchronicity, and this little girl whom I’ve never met turned out to be a timely reminder that getting from point A to point B lies in ticking the boxes off a mammoth to-do-list one task a day at a time, and that getting through starts by simply getting out of bed and showing up for life.
