When I had the inspiration to create a self-portrait, my first idea was to capture my best self. To portray myself smiling and full of energy in a cherry-picked moment in time. But only capturing the best moments of my life ignores the other 90% of the human experience. It ignores the times when I'm sad, angry, lonely, bored, and indifferent. Social media is a great example of this issue. People from all over the world showcase the very best moments of their lives, curating what others see by only showing themselves at their best. This creates a false narrative that we as people should be happy and energetic all the time. As an artist, I don't want to feed into this negative cycle. I am not happy and energetic all the time, And that's okay.