Against a backdrop of escalating divisiveness, hatred, and anti-Semitism, I am focused on creating imaginative-realist paintings based on historical snapshots of young women and girls murdered in the Holocaust. My goal is to honor these lost lives; to give back something that was stolen, and remind the world that these young people once lived and loved, and had stories to tell. Through imagining what might have been, I hope to bring their memory to life; to ignite compassion, creating a collective call for social change. The paintings aim not just to depict but to provoke, urging the viewer to confront the past and stand against all forms of bigotry, forging a collective resolve to cultivate a world where compassion eclipses the darkness of intolerance.

There is a difference between knowing and feeling; between history and story. Art and storytelling are catalysts for propelling the audience beyond facts and statistics. Art transcends cultural and temporal barriers, allowing for connections between individuals across time periods, cultural backgrounds, and belief systems. The idyllic narratives portrayed in the paintings beckon the viewer to experience a story that never got to unfold; to touch a life that was horrifically extinguished. The paintings confront the haunting parallels between the past and the troubling resurgence of intolerance today. We know the devastating numbers and dates of the Holocaust, and perhaps the unimaginable, overwhelming scope of horror and death allows us emotional distance. But in connecting with an individual life; in taking the time to gaze into their eyes and contemplate what might have been, we touch the core of humanity. We experience the sacredness of EACH life and commit to never allowing history to repeat itself.