Telling unpopular stories through unpopular art

I used to think that people didn’t get me.

I never fit in and felt like an outsider.

And for decades, I was ashamed of this.

As a teenager, I was bullied for being different.

A weirdo. Someone who didn’t belong. I even had to change schools because of it.

But there was one place I always felt at home: Creativity.

I wrote stories and poems in my teens.

I wrote music in my early 20’s.

I picked up photography in my 30’s.

I got back into writing in my early 40’s.

I wasn’t just drawn to creative work, I needed it to make sense of myself.

Up until my 40’s I thought my differences were a flaw.

Now I know they’re my biggest strength.

And now I know that I don’t express myself to be popular,

I don't express myself so that all people get me.

I express myself when I have something to say.

To give people courage to express themselves too.

If there’s one thing I understood in my journey:

Popularity means nothing without the depth of impact.

Art doesn’t have to be popular to be special. It needs to move you. It needs to make you feel.

And that's what I do. I create my artwork. It's unpopular. And it makes people feel.