Remembering Who I Am

The opportunity to use visual mediums as a means of self-expression, in a way that touches another, is to me an incredibly exhilarating experience. As a minority woman I find myself in a world that believes that racism and sexism are things of the past and yet every day here I am confronted with the often subtle, but sometimes not so subtle views of a society that classifies women of color at the bottom of the social ladder. I work from this perspective to present my work because it is the view that I have access to everyday. There are times when I am inviting the viewer to see the world as I see it. I want to use my work to tell my story.

I am interested in identity, relationships and how cultural memories inform both personal identity and the relationships that are formed. My work is looking at the view of these relationship nuances from where I stand at the moment, which is open to change and influenced by the cultural backdrop that I find myself situated in at the time. In my work, I like to tell the story that is present for me at the time. When I tell a story with my work, I am giving a piece of myself away in a good way. I am giving access to a doorway, which leads the viewer into my world.

Path of Grief is a 42″ x 48″ acrylic painting by Michelle Sherman, msherman@moore.edu.