Portrait of a Hermit, 2018

Conceived during a residency at an ancient hermitage on a sacred mountain in Spoleto, Italy, Portrait of a Hermit is a meditation on solitude, exile, and deep time. Trees, stones, and natural forms are gently adorned with gold leaf—framing and isolating elements within nature to draw attention to their silent presence and enduring wisdom.

Inspired by those who came before and the traces they left behind, the series reflects on what remains after we are gone. The act of marking—using materials derived from the earth—becomes a ritual of reverence and remembrance.

Here, nature is both artwork and intelligent system. To observe it is to witness a living network—resilient, interconnected, and ancient. Portrait of a Hermit invites quiet attention and reflects on how to belong, not through ownership or dominance, but through humility, care, and coexistence.