This piece will be available for purchase at Gallery B612 in Pioneer Square, Seattle for their aquatic-themed show running September 3 through October 28.
—
12x12x1.5in, painted edges, ready to hang
Acrylic on canvas
From the series Under the Surface
This painting was inspired by the corporate phrase “sharp elbows,” a term often used to describe individuals perceived as difficult, aggressive, or challenging to work with. In practice, the phrase frequently operates as a subtle form of social correction — particularly toward people whose confidence, directness, competence, or conviction disrupt established power dynamics.
The puffer fish became a natural metaphor for this tension. Beneath its defensive exterior is a vulnerable creature whose spikes emerge only under pressure. What appears threatening is, in many cases, a survival response.
The work reflects on the emotional consequences of modern workplace environments where individuals are encouraged to be bold, strategic, and high-performing, while simultaneously being punished when those qualities become too visible, especially in ways that challenge hierarchy, consensus, or comfort.
Inspired by the artist’s experience witnessing a respected leader quietly reduced to a dismissive characterization after being laid off, Sharp Elbows explores the disconnect between corporate language and lived reality. Contributions, loyalty, sacrifice, and institutional knowledge can be collapsed into vague personality critiques once someone is no longer considered useful to the system.
Within the series Under the Surface, the painting examines the adaptive traits people develop inside professional ecosystems and the ways defensive behaviors are often mistaken for inherent character flaws rather than responses to pressure, instability, and repeated invalidation.
This piece will be available for purchase at Gallery B612 in Pioneer Square, Seattle for their aquatic-themed show running September 3 through October 28.
—
12x12x1.5in, painted edges, ready to hang
Acrylic on canvas
From the series Under the Surface
This painting was inspired by the corporate phrase “sharp elbows,” a term often used to describe individuals perceived as difficult, aggressive, or challenging to work with. In practice, the phrase frequently operates as a subtle form of social correction — particularly toward people whose confidence, directness, competence, or conviction disrupt established power dynamics.
The puffer fish became a natural metaphor for this tension. Beneath its defensive exterior is a vulnerable creature whose spikes emerge only under pressure. What appears threatening is, in many cases, a survival response.
The work reflects on the emotional consequences of modern workplace environments where individuals are encouraged to be bold, strategic, and high-performing, while simultaneously being punished when those qualities become too visible, especially in ways that challenge hierarchy, consensus, or comfort.
Inspired by the artist’s experience witnessing a respected leader quietly reduced to a dismissive characterization after being laid off, Sharp Elbows explores the disconnect between corporate language and lived reality. Contributions, loyalty, sacrifice, and institutional knowledge can be collapsed into vague personality critiques once someone is no longer considered useful to the system.
Within the series Under the Surface, the painting examines the adaptive traits people develop inside professional ecosystems and the ways defensive behaviors are often mistaken for inherent character flaws rather than responses to pressure, instability, and repeated invalidation.
