2025: Loss, Growth, and Continuing
2025 was not my favorite year.
It was a year marked by loss. We lost a beloved matriarch in my husband’s family. We lost our dogs. We lost my mother’s dogs, who felt like mine too. Grief showed up in layers, quietly and persistently, weaving itself into everyday life.
And yet, life continued.
It was also the best gardening year I have ever had. Slow, intentional, abundant. That rhythm mattered more than I realized at the time.
In the spring, I had the opportunity to participate in Newfields Art in Bloom, creating a floral arrangement in conversation with artwork. Shortly after, I experienced a moment I will always be grateful for. Exhibiting my work in New York with Perseus Gallery at the World Trade Center. Standing there, surrounded by so much movement and energy, felt surreal and affirming all at once.
This summer, I poured myself into what I believe is the most beautiful piece I have ever created. It took over three months to physically build, but in truth, it took years. The work is made from flowers I grew myself, carefully dried, preserved, and hand resined one by one. Near the end, I made a mistake, which adjusting the coloring of the flowers. It was not catastrophic, but it was not the outcome I envisioned either. What followed were weeks of disappointment, frustration, and grief over something I had nurtured for so long.
The piece is not ruined. It is still worthy of being seen. But the experience taught me something deeper about patience, acceptance, and how to continue even when the result is not what you hoped for. I will continue this collection slowly. Growing the flowers, drying them, preserving them. All of it takes time, and I am honoring that process.
Through all of this, I kept making art.
If anything, this year reshaped my work in unexpected ways. I began creating sculptures inspired by stuffed animals, forms that feel deeply healing to me. They represent a quiet exchange. My child self handing my adult self a teddy bear, offering comfort, love, and permission to soften. These sculptures have become a place of refuge, both emotionally and creatively.
I am excited to share these pieces in an upcoming exhibition, Real Love Baby, at Garfield Park in Indianapolis. The opening reception is February 13th from 6 to 8 PM, and I would truly love to see you there. Your support means more than you know.
2025 may not have been easy, but it shaped me. And I am still here. Still growing. Still making. Still continuing.