"Creativity takes courage."

-Henri Matisse

Art of Taste.

I SEE TASTE. Synesthesia is my superpower.

I visualize taste as color, texture, pattern and motion as well as experience it as emotion. 

“Synesthesia is a neurological condition in which stimulation of one sensory or cognitive pathway (for example, hearing) leads to automatic, involuntary experiences in a second sensory or cognitive pathway (such as vision). Simply put, when one sense is activated, another unrelated sense is activated at the same time. This may, for instance, take the form of hearing music and simultaneously sensing the sound as swirls or patterns of color.” --excerpt from Psychology Today.

I am synesthetic and also happen to be a classically trained fine artist. When I visualize taste, I am able to tap into my formal art training and use creativity as a means to communicate it. 

I graduated with my BFA in Fine Art Painting from the Academy of Art University in San Francisco in 2004, with a focus on representational still life. I am classically trained in traditional realism, however, after a creative breakthrough and shift from realism to abstraction, I no longer wish to emulate reality in the form of representational paintings; rather, my pursuit is to harness the soul of flavor. 

My paintings are abstract expressions of taste: capturing flavor through color, texture, motion and palette knife strokes in oil onto canvas. Beyond the canvas, I curate story-based exhibitions that cultivate interactive dialogue and create impactful emotional connection. Surrounding art with experience, leaves lingering memory impressions the way the song of a bird resonates after it takes flight from the moment.  My intention is to deepen the relationship one has with fine art through storytelling, by blurring boundaries, and confusing the senses.

Through the universal language of food, wine and art we are able to transcend culture and create dialogue that dissolves barriers and transforms commonalities; we are able to achieve social inclusion which builds a sense of community, place, and emotional connection.

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Many artists have historically been known to paint the sound of music, such as Wassily Kandinsky and Piet Mondrian. More commonly, many renowned composers have been documented seeing and identifying color in their musical notes. Interestingly, no two synesthetes ever report the same associations! This special “ability” helps with memorization, mathematics and color association. Although there are historically documented artists known to depict music as visual art and renowned composers who see color in music, it is rare to find a painter who interprets taste as a visual depiction. 

Art has the power to convey emotion; the ability to vibrate empathy through its viewer to communicate a message that is otherwise intangible. The culmination of these artists elevate the way I think about the power of a brushstroke and exemplify the ability to tell a story with emotion.

I aspire to work with innovative like minded creatives, culinary professionals, musicians, companies and luxury brands in collaboration to elevate flavor into full sensorial experiences, internationally.