Braless.

Matted hair.

Wild eyebrows.

Dark circles ‘round my eyes.

Moles like mushrooms.

Bloated from bread.

Skin saggin’ where the babies were.

Hands dry from the Dawn.

Teeth tinged by the coffee.

My dances move from the inside of my head toward my knees as I iron.

Today I am an Ernie Barnes painting, waking up to a domestic disco.

Staring in the mirror, I realize that I haven’t had a beauty regimen since I was getting my hair and nails done every two weeks in high school.

Even back then, minimal-to-no make-up.

Because a flawless complexion on a marred human being is such a paradox.

I look at myself in the mirror.

I both question and praise myself.

I see myself and the translucence that allows God’s light to pass through me.

No cosmetic enhancement or eco styling gel is needed for this encounter.

I am reminded that we are wonderful creations.

I am reminded that I plus God, am enough.

I am reminded that we are canvases.

Creative and artful.

This solo exhibition is a reflection of life–

A projection of how we think and feel–

More than an aesthetically pleasing encounter–

Whatever has been borne in us, positive or negative, is our art/our aesthetic.

The dreams that beckon us.

Our tendencies to be manipulative and contradictory.

I am reminded that an artist’s canvas cannot be primed until it has been stretched.

I look in the mirror today and I am reminded that through our unique aesthetic, we gain a deeper understanding of ourselves, which allows us to see and accept that which comes naturally.

Even what doesn’t come so naturally, can still be art!

Elongated like Barnes or collaged like Bearden.

Have you looked in the mirror today?

Whether your color palettes inspire makeovers or some other kind of transformation.

Be the canvas.

Be stretched.

Become the masterpiece you were created to be.

God has given us our brushes.

Now let’s paint.

♥ clinnesha