Artist Statement: Prana

Prana - 40” x 30” Acrylic on Canvas

I was one day inspired to paint on a bigger canvas. I’ve been slowly building up my confidence to paint bigger and bigger, increasing the canvas size 10 inches at a time. I picked up a 30x40 canvas without the slightest idea as to what I was going to paint on it. But I was determined. I placed the canvas against the wall facing my bed so that I would see it before I went to sleep and every time I woke up.

Three days later it came to me in a dream, something that’s never really happened before. But I saw the image in detail and I heard someone tell me, “This is it. This is what you’re going to paint and this is what you’re going to call it.” Easy enough, I thought.

At the time I was painting mostly floral. I can’t remember the last time I’ve attempted to paint a portrait using acrylic. The concept felt overwhelming. The urge to recreate the image I saw in my dream was so powerful that I had to try.

Prana is Sanskrit for “life force.” It is the energy that flows through our bodies and can be experienced through the breath.

At the time that I was creating the painting, I was on a bit of a spiritual journey. Previously, I felt that my surroundings didn’t align with my true self. I was caught up in things that really didn’t matter to me. I spent a lot of time alone, meditating and trying to reconnect with my intuition and my higher self.