Foil Study (Gold and Silver)

As a neurodivergent artist, I am pulled to surfaces I can feel, not just see. This piece is 16 small gold and silver squares, each one textured differently — combed, stippled, scraped — made because my hands needed to do the same motion again and again to settle. Gold and silver are sensory-seeking colours; they change when you move, they catch the light and give it back. The loose grey brush marks and the ochre arches crossing over are the background noise, the thoughts that don't land, while the little squares are the place my eye can actually lock in. It's pattern as a place to rest.

I left the brush and tape in the image on purpose. Many neurodiverse people learn to hide how we work to look "finished" — this work does the opposite. The splatter top left, the tape edge, the bristle drags are all kept visible as part of the painting, not cleaned away. That is what unmasking looks like in my practice: leaving the evidence of how it was made, the repetition, the collection, the hyperfocus on foil and texture, and letting the surface be both messy and precious at the same time.