HOLD THE LIGHT – artwork inspired by PATINA: Our history, our experiences, the traumas we carry, all inform our behaviors, the choices we make, and how we treat others – and ourselves. It happens naturally as we age and are exposed to the elements. When the earliest foundations of love are conditional, when the fear of criticism is around every corner, we remain constantly on high alert, always afraid of what we might do wrong, never feeling secure or supported. We grow to see others for their mistakes, to manifest our mistrust as cruelty, to never let anyone get close – unless the cycle is broken and we can finally feel safe. Patination, a chemical process in which metals are oxidized, creates colours, patterns, and textures. When applied deliberately as an artistic process, this look, otherwise attributed to worn and weathered objects, becomes an intentional and striking transformation.