Chloe McEldowney
Chilis

4 x 4 inches
Oil on panel
2024

“After the birth of my son, my painting habits were forced to change. I fought to carve out painting sessions throughout the day, wherein I often found myself painting the same plant over several days, and at different times of day. And I watched the plants move through their tireless process of becoming, more closely than I had before. The sun rose and fell, and leaves and flowers opened and closed. Leaves wilted and drooped, and roots drank, and they stood tall again. Watching these changes in seeming stop-motion, and integrating that flux into my work, gave me a sense of ease as I waded through the constant, sometimes-chaotic changes to my child, my body and my life.

Drawing on these dual roles as an artist and mother, my work explores the oft-conflicting tensions that exist in the worlds of nurturing what you love. Through painting plants and people, I explore the dual needs for solitude and connection. For self-sacrifice and self-care. Growth as excitement for newness and growth as grief for what is lost. Reflecting those dissonances, my paintings are a fragmented, disrupted environment lovingly crafted by an endless pursuit of understanding.”

View more original oil paintings by Chloe McEldowney