I am extremely honored to be one of the artists selected to create a piece of artwork that reflected my vision of health equity for The Center for Health Equity in Saint Petersburg, FL. My biggest goal as an artist is to make art that supports the greater good in the world. That is why it makes me so happy to have my work displayed in a beautiful place where the main mission is to bring people together to find the resources and partners to solve some of the community's biggest challenges.
This is my artist statement for the piece:
Equity Hemisphere
In my earlier years, when I was a teenage single mom, I became very aware that healthcare was not promised to all. When you are struggling to make ends meet or are at a disadvantage it is harder to get access to healthy food and quality medical care. Being in this unique position allowed me to see outside of my own personal struggle and relate to others that were fighting to maintain the same level of health and comfort that most of us take for granted.
This piece represents the ideology of health equity, that everyone deserves the right to healthy food and quality healthcare. The silhouette figures remind us that our differences do not matter that we are all human and a part of our environment. When we are aligned to this ideal everyone is supported and the disadvantaged are elevated to the same level of care. The hemisphere shape represents the cycles that is life itself, giving the viewer a unique overhead perspective. This piece is wired in a way to adjust the figures to be either upside down or right side up. Representing the vulnerability in our healthcare system, but with health equity the sun shines on all of us with love.