I am drawn to the excluded, ignored, and abandoned things. Our eyes constantly scan hundreds of thousands of images daily, searching for what evokes emotion: novelty, amusement, inspiration, or sadness. Our minds are trained to seek essence and filter through the noise. My work explores the idea of substance versus futility, driven by curiosity about the mechanisms of human perception and how sensation and meaning are derived from it.

The concept of my practice consistently reflects my experiences in Florence, Italy, from 2016-2017. Engaging with local craft communities in Canada and Italy, my interest has turned to the mundane, making it natural for me to focus on leather in Florence. The leather banana peels are products of my daily routine in Florence. I eat one banana each day in my studio, and with each peel, I trace its shape on a piece of leather. I then cut out the shape and use fabric paint to color the inside and outside surfaces, capturing each peel's natural hues and textures. Once the banana is peeled, the skin ages, so I immediately scan it to document each peel. The painted leather, a flat banana map, is heated to approximately 40 degrees to bind the fabric paint to the leather surface.

The next step involves transforming the flat leather into a three-dimensional form by wrapping it around a small bottle with wire. Leather, a plastic material, retains its shape for a long time before slowly reverting to its flat form. Finally, these handmade banana skins are stamped with “Florence, Genuine Leather, made in Italy” using a 200-pound press, permanently breaking the structure of the fiber and leaving a lasting impression.

My work is a reflection of everyday moments, emphasizing the beauty in the overlooked and discarded. Through this meticulous process, I aim to highlight the transient nature of objects and the lasting impressions they leave behind. This series encapsulates the complexity of migration, the sense of loss, and the journey of adaptation and renewal.