Seeking Symbiosis
This body of work explores learning to cope with various experiences, from illness to trauma, and the growth that continues to result from that process. Anatomical and plant imagery are combined to convey the relationship between disease or injury and change and growth. Each plant was carefully chosen to embody the specific message within each painting whether it is shame, depression, disease, or symbiosis. Seeking symbiosis delves into the artist’s experience with her own health, learning how to sit with it, and learning how to do so without letting one consume the other.
A message from the artist:
I hope that this work inspires and encourages your own discussion of learning to live symbiotically with the uncertain and traumatic experiences that happen in life. I believe that talking about mental health is critical. The themes in this show were built over 29 years and it has taken a great deal of support and personal effort to be where I am today. Most importantly, while I created the paintings, the support from others throughout my life allowed them to manifest as art instead of something else. This show is dedicated to my parents, Mohan and Nishi, who, despite cultural barriers, always got me the help I needed. To my sister, Monica, for ensuring I do not make major painting errors and who helps me climb out of the holes I sometimes exist in. To my boyfriend, Brendyn, for being a big reason for the positive growth in my life. To my inspiring friends and colleagues for helping me grow personally and professionally. To my therapist, Brittany- for her unrelenting support, guidance, and helping me realize that I can sit with this.
24 X 36 ‘‘
Acrylic on birch
On depression. Plants that are invasive species.
Lythrum salicaria (purple loosestrife)
Forsythia
Phragmites australis (common reed)
Lonicera japonica (Japanese honeysuckle)
Nyctanthes arbor-tristis (night-flowering jasmine, shefali)
On Shame. Plants that take a very long time to grow.
Puya chilensis (sheep-eater)
Cardiocrinum giganteum (Giant Himalayan Lily)
Selenicerus grandiflorus (night-blooming cereus)
On limiting injuries. Plants that feel stagnant.
Polytrichastrum formosum (bank haircap)
Usnea filipendula (fishbone beard lichen)
Parmelia sulcata (hammered shield lichen)
Cladonia rangiferina (reindeer lichen)
Xanthoria parietina (common orange lichen)
On influenza and other communicable respiratory disease. Plants that help us breathe, and those that suffocate. Please remember to wash your hands, cover your cough, and stay home when you're sick.
Spathiphyllum (peace lily)
Forsythia
Toxicodendron radicans (poison ivy)
On Shriners and work with patients who have severe burns. I made this painting to honor the patients treated at SHC, and also to honor the people I work with. "It's never just a burn" is something I was told when I started, and something that stuck with me. I did not truly understand resilience until I met the patients we care for. They are an example to all of us on learning to adapt, grow, and change with their new circumstances. The flowers represent a small portion of the countries and respective national flowers from which we receive patients. This painting is dedicated to my colleagues at Shriners, who tirelessly work to help our wonderful patients and their families. Burn care is meaningful work, but it can be challenging for those who provide it. The dedication and passion my colleagues exhibit in the face of trauma and adversity is a testament to the good things in this world. The healed burn on an exposed hand symbolizes the impact our patients have on us as we try our best to do the right thing every day.
Dahlia pinnata (garden dahlia)
Lycaste skinneri (white nun orchid)
Peristeria elata (holy ghost orchid)
On Transcranial Magnetic Therapy. Plants that are beautiful yet poisonous.
Atropa belladonna (deadly nightshade)
Conium maculatum (hemlock)
Convallaria majalis (lily of the valley)
Fritillaria meleagris (lazarus bell)
Brugmansia (angel's trumpet)
These pieces are my personal interpretations of individuals in my life. Many of them are commissions, some are gifts and displays of gratitude. My recent body of work utilizes plants and flowers to represent growth. Growth from disease, growth from personal experience. Various anatomical features were chosen based on the people who commissioned each piece. My process involves creating a narrative of a person or time in their life.
16 x 24’’ ink, watercolor, gouache on watercolor paper
2021
An over share (as i do): I made this piece for my therapist. I started working with her in 2016, and our last session was before I moved to New Orleans for medical school.
The work is meant to be a combination of us, showing the growth I experienced throughout the years. The plants symbolize aspects of both of us. I chose the spine for growth, and strength. She truly is the connective tissue that helped me deal with countless medication changes, multiple clinical trials, painful but effective TMS, break ups, the trauma of my job. Brittany truly changed my life, helped me identify my values and how to serve them. She helped me become a more resilient person who can cope with depression in a way that I didn’t think was possible five years ago. More so she helped me see that I was and am a resilient person.
Leaving Houston is mostly a good thing, but the loss of our sessions together will be hard.
I know that I joke about being mentally ill because it helps me compartmentalize, and if you know me well I’ve probably told you to go to therapy because (with the right person) it is wonderful. If you needed a signal today or any day, please reach out to someone. In 2016, I didn’t think I would be alive in five years. We joked about me being a great patient outcome, but therapy is so much more than that.
The last thing I’ll say is that going to therapy is not easy, and is made infinitely easier when you have resources like a supportive family, a job, health insurance, and steady income. I could go on about insurance being tied to employment etc but I won’t. Overall it takes willingness to utilize these things, but I write this knowing not everyone has the privilege of access.
22 x 30’’ ink, watercolor, gouache on watercolor paper
2021
This piece is an original commission for a friend to embody emotions they had over the course of the pandemic.
The pandemic has left many of us feeling like there is a knot in our chest, anxiety filling out bodies, and the most we can do is hunch over and hold something close. Last year I made a body of work that was about uncertainty and trauma, and what can come out of it. This piece was personalized for a client to signify some of those anxieties, and the growth and recovery that develops during and after. For her, it was strength through family and pets. The things that keep us afloat are often the people in our lives, our families, our pets, and the work.
Texas Medical Center and Downtown Houston Skylines merged with a Surgeons’ pursuits. 2018-2019
16’ x 20’ | Gauche, watercolor, and ink | 2018
These pieces are studies of the movement of ink in water. Sometimes the forms that result appear biological; organic and proteinaceous material swimming in pools.
A study into plant anatomy, diverging from people.
These are snippets of things I am working on. Commissions, personal work, doodles, sketches.