Chicago, Illinois

oil and collage on MRI

17 inches long x 14 inches wide

Pain is a solitary truth that defies communication, ­ maddeningly subjective and resistant to language and measurement. To live in pain is to live in isolation.

In the absence of speech, a visual language of metaphor is a constructive tool, creating artifacts that can function as the speaking self.

In RESONANCE, the MRI grids of the brain document both the origin of pain and the concept of a self. Their altered surface is wrought with physical struggle: opaque paint obscures the film, scratched drawing removes its surface, collage both asserts and denies a third dimension. These tensions embody the eloquent communication of the visual metaphor.