What does it mean to truly thrive? That question became the starting point for my latest commissioned triptych, created as part of a community-driven project supported by the Genesis Collective and funded by the Heinz Endowments. After gathering responses from people across Southwestern Pennsylvania, three themes emerged again and again: stability, connection, and freedom. Each painting explores one of these ideas and reflects how thriving is shaped by the support we receive, the relationships we build, and the choices we are able to make. Gold leaf appears throughout the work as a symbol of abundance—not just financial wealth, but the fuller, richer life that becomes possible when our basic needs are met and we have people around us who help us grow.
Artist Statement
This work started with a simple question: what does thriving actually look like?
I thought I’d hear something clear. Instead, I got real answers. People talked about having enough money to breathe, but also about having someone show up for them. About energy, time, health, motivation. About getting through hard days and having something left for themselves.
What stuck with me was this—freedom is possible without stability and connection, but it’s a lot harder. You can fight your way into it, but it takes more out of you, and it’s harder to hold.
This piece is built around that.
It breaks into three parts: stability, connection, and freedom. Not as abstract ideas, but as things people actually live through. Stability can be something as basic as a safe home, or as small as getting attention as a kid. Connection can be someone helping you through a hard time. Freedom isn’t fixed—it changes as life changes, from figuring out a career to raising a child to just having space to think.
I used gold leaf in each panel as a stand-in for opulence—not luxury, but having enough to feel full. But it’s not everywhere. It doesn’t reach every layer, every form, every moment.
Because that’s how it works.
Some people have access to more. Some don’t. Some get pieces of it. Some fight for all of it.
This work isn’t trying to define thriving. It’s showing how uneven it actually is.
Stability
Stability is the base.
It’s not just money or a job. It can be a steady home, support growing up, someone paying attention, someone showing up. It’s the stuff that lets you stand without constantly bracing.
When it’s missing, everything gets harder.
The structure in this piece holds that weight. The gold is there, but it doesn’t cover everything.
Because not everyone starts with the same foundation.
Connection
Connection is what keeps you from doing everything alone.
It can be community, family, friendships, or just one person who helps you get through something hard. It doesn’t have to be big—it just has to be real.
In this panel, nothing stands on its own. Everything overlaps, pushes, and responds.
The gold moves through some of those interactions, but not all of them.
Because not every connection leads to support. And not everyone has the same access to it.
Freedom
Freedom shifts.
It’s not one thing. It changes depending on where you are in life. It might be choosing your career, having time to create, raising a child, or just having a moment where you can think clearly and make your own decisions.
It’s possible without the other two—but it’s harder.
This piece opens up, but it’s not effortless. The gold shows up, but it’s uneven.
Because even when you get there, it doesn’t mean everything is available to you.