20260423-098_web_a_window
A Window
Isabella Greenlee
Digital painting and acrylic on paper, 17 1/4 x 10 in.
In this project, I used color and facial expression to demonstrate acceptance and healing. With a focus on healing as my theme, I took advantage of the concept that eyes are “the window to the soul”. I also used harsh lighting and color to indicate the veil of grief and loss being lifted.
In the center of the work is a sliver of Em’s eyes, looking up and to the side, smiling. Her skin is a natural shade, rather than the yellow-green of my previous works, and no plants are present, another metaphor for her healing.
20260423-092_web_note_to_self
Note to Self
Isabella Greenlee
Acrylic, ink, graphite, chalk pastels on paper, 20 x 16 in.
In this project, I used color and facial expression to demonstrate acceptance and healing. With a focus on healing as my theme, I took advantage of the concept that eyes are “the window to the soul”. I also used harsh lighting and color to indicate the veil of grief and loss being lifted.
In the center of the work is a sliver of Em’s eyes, looking up and to the side, smiling. Her skin is a natural shade, rather than the yellow-green of my previous works, and no plants are present, another metaphor for her healing.
20260423-115_web_head_in_the_clouds
20260423-111_web_shelter_from_the_storm
Shelter from the Storm
Zoe Murata
Colored pencil, 14 x 19 in.
Shelter from the Storm examines the protective harmony between humanity and nature during a crisis. By depicting a figure shielding a deer—a symbol of gentleness and innocence—from an impending avalanche, the piece challenges the narrative of human-nature opposition. Rendered in colored pencil, the work utilizes complex layering, using warm undertones and vibrant purples in the shadows to breathe life into a cold, destructive landscape. This interaction explores the instinctual spiritual connection between living beings, illustrating how empathy can thrive amidst devastation. Ultimately, it invites viewers to reflect on their own role in nurturing the natural world.
20260416-008_web
Self-Portrait
Zoe Murata
Mixed media, 9 x 12 in.
This self-portrait examines personal growth through the lens of optimism, illustrating how internal positivity reshapes one’s perception of the world. Created by scanning a textured colored-pencil drawing into Procreate, the piece merges traditional layering with digital manipulation. The background, a cloned and vibrantly adjusted texture from a reference photo, mirrors how a hopeful internal state can “brighten” external reality. By incorporating radiant leading lines that act as symbolic “rays of hope,” the composition draws focus to the subject while emphasizing a harmonious, luminous relationship between the self and the environment.