I have lived by the sea for most of my life, and living at the “edge” of the land has shaped both my life and my work. I feel a fundamental need to be near an edge, to feel the physical edge of the coastline, the vastness of the open sea, and the far reaching empty space. This sense of edge also exists metaphorically in my practice: the edge of sanity, the edge of health, the edge of what it means to exist. I currently live and work in Brighton, UK, by the sea, where this landscape continues to ground and inform my work.

I grew up between Brazil and the UK, raised by psychiatric nurse parents, where communication, listening, and human connection were central to everyday life. These themes are often present in my work and at the heart of my practice is a curiosity towards being alive. I explore the human condition, relationships, freedom, joy and absurdity. I am interested in what it means to inhabit a finite body, to love others deeply, and to exist among the vast diversity of human experience.

My work sits within a lineage of Outsider Art, and is informed by my Art Psychotherapy training. Whilst studying, I developed an interest in early asylum based art therapy and my experience of placement on an acute mental health ward, reinforced my belief in art as a gateway to the unconscious; a space where expression can exist without judgment or hierarchy.

Whilst receiving treatment for breast cancer, my painting practice became a form of survival and personal art therapy. Making work during this time was a way to process fear, vulnerability, and recovery - a way to stay alive emotionally as well as physically. Art became a place where I could hold pain, uncertainty, and hope.

My approach to making is intuitive and process-driven. I am drawn to materials that allow for immediate mark making, such as paint and collage, as these lend themselves to a raw sort of expression. My work may appear messy, uncomfortable, and even ugly at times, as I allow this free expression to emerge. I hope viewers are inspired by the playfulness found in my work and leave with their own permission to be silly, strange, and unapologetically themselves. I believe that reclaiming our instinctual, untamed selves is a vital act of healing.