In Her Own Light

by Kandi Finney

“I paint to evoke the feeling of standing at the edge of something vast. In this work the figure becomes both human and ocean, rendered in a saturated palette that blurs boundaries. The turquoise and gold tones whisper of waves and sunlight; the hair spills down like a cascade of seaweed. By giving the skin an aquatic blue hue, I want to suggest that we are more water than flesh, that memory itself can be fluid. The surfboard is not merely a prop but an extension of the body, part sail, part shield carrying dreams toward a horizon that always recedes. My process begins with drawing; I sketch digitally, using bold outlines and flat planes of color to distill emotion into simple shapes. Pop art’s graphic language and the kinetic energy of surf culture inform my choices, but so does the quiet of watching light shift across the ocean. Each line is laid down like a wave cresting; the bright fields of color are meant to radiate warmth. Working in this stylised manner allows me to tell a story that is both personal and universal about longing, movement, and transformation. More than a literal scene, this painting is a meditative ode to resilience and joy. Surfing, to me, is a metaphor for living: you surrender to forces beyond your control while discovering your own balance within them. I want viewers to feel the salt on their lips, the wind in their hair, and the promise that the world is wider than it seems. Even if you have never stood on a board, perhaps you have stood at the edge of possibility and felt the pull of something bigger than yourself. That sense of expansion is what I hope to share here.”