Earlier this year, the two largest paintings in my current catalogue of work – Reunion and The Fallen Evening Star, the latter of which measures 3 x 2 feet – found their new home with a collector. This welcome turn of events created an unexpected dilemma: I now had a size gap in my repertoire of available paintings that needed to be filled.

I’ve written before about all the considerations I factor in when I decide on the size of a new painting and the comfort zone I once found myself staying in, often keeping my substrates to under 2 feet. After realizing that it boiled down to an issue in confidence, I was determined to push myself to work larger. So once I settled on what the subject matter of my next largest painting would be, I landed on a canvas size I had never yet tackled before in my studio:  4 x 2 ½ feet.

A paint study of the artwork I was about to embark upon.

I first had to address a practical consideration before I could begin working on a painting of this size. The easel I had been working on up to this point in my studio, although sufficient, wasn’t very stable when it came to holding large canvases. It also wasn’t easy to move around. So I found myself investing in a new studio easel that was both sturdy and included caster wheels on the bottom of it so that I could easily slide a painting across my work space while it was still in progress.

I began to work on this new piece in June once I had everything in place. I felt confident as I laid down the foundation of the painting. Around this time, I had connected online with a local photographer by the name of Talia Bonanno who was looking to capture an artist in their studio for a personal project. This led to Bonanno visiting my studio on a critical day of work for me – when I added the cascade of colors that are central to this piece. I’m thankful that I was able to get this moment in time professionally documented. Looking at these photos now is a reflection for me of how far I have grown. No longer the doubtful artist who once felt like their ideas weren’t big enough to command a large surface plane.

Photo by Talia Bonanno

Shortly after Bonanno’s visit, however, the pressure of working big started weighing on me. I found myself overthinking each brushstroke and wondering if I was really happy with how my painting was developing. I had reached a point where it felt like the next best move was simply to pause and give the work, and myself, room to breathe. It was my intention to create a few small artworks on paper that, together with this large painting, would debut at The Other Art Fair this September as my newest collection of works, entitled The Great Benefic. 

I found my confidence again as I worked through each of these smaller pieces, which I’ve named after the four Galilean moons of Jupiter: Europa Falls, Io Falls, Ganymede Falls, and Callisto Falls. I approached their execution like I do my plein air paintings: working swiftly and allowing each brushstroke to flow expressively. It’s my favorite way of working. It was in painting these narrative talismans that I found answers to questions that were raised while I had been working on the larger piece, such as, “How does one paint a pool full of colorful water?” Thankfully, the answer came to me instinctually.

Europa Falls, Acrylic, Sagittarius Moon water and 18 kt. gold leaf on handmade cotton paper, 2026.

After completing these four paintings, I returned to the large canvas that had been waiting patiently on my sturdy easel for the last two months. Over the last week, I have been adding limbs and leaves to trees, mist and reflections to prismatic waters, and refining the details of a figure who is quietly sitting and taking in the scene. I can’t wait to share I Found You at Jupiter Falls with you later this month. Not only is it my largest work to date, but it is also my most ambitious. It will debut in person at The Other Art Fair in Los Angeles, although my 11th House community will be the first to receive a full preview of this work along with the rest of the pieces in my latest collection, The Great Benefic. Sign up today to join.