Bella Leonard

I explore ways that individuals exist within their own heads. I use art as a way to study how my own dreams and self-talk influence the way that I view and interpret the world around me. While my work is often a case study of myself, it also gives insight into how people as a whole deal with the mundane, with change, with fear. I often look to my subconscious thoughts, be it dreams or impulses, in an attempt to understand my own identity. My paintings and sculptural works help me to express the thoughts and feelings that I have internalized for much of my life. My works occasionally feature humor and references to pop culture in order to better relate to the rest of the world, just as I use these approaches and tools in other aspects of my life. Although I may not yet have a good sense of my personal identity or what my purpose is in the world, I feel better equipped to deal with these fears when I am able to express them to others. It is this ideology that I convey through my work. I don’t know what my art says about me as a person; all I know is that it is mine.