Soul Song centers the human voice as something physical, communal, and almost sacred. Four figures stand together beneath an open blue sky, dressed in richly patterned garments and layered beadwork. At the center, one singer throws her head back mid-song, eyes closed and mouth open, while the surrounding figures seem caught in the same current of rhythm, breath, and memory.
I painted this piece around the feeling that a song can carry more than sound. It can carry ancestry, grief, celebration, identity, and the presence of people standing beside you. The gestures, closed eyes, ornament, and repeated circular forms throughout the beadwork give the image a sense of movement even while the figures remain grounded.