A Reflection on my art Practice in 2025

January 16, 2026

2025 was an exciting, interesting, horrible, fun year of self-discovery, exploration, and a whole lot of healing in my personal life. Maybe I will write about that in the future, but right now I want to discuss my artwork from last year (the artwork I’ve shared for now).

This will be divided by type of artwork created, just like my website… because although there was some overlap… mostly, I stuck to one thing at a time (my interests come and go like the tide or something…).

Photography:

Early 2025 (the winter months), I felt alive practicing photography. Something possessed me… I was taking pictures all the time. I don’t have much to say, but I will reflect on three of my favourites.

The first one I am proud of because not only did it take a lot of time and effort to capture, despite not being the best night photograph ever, but I just really like the colors and the vibe. I’ve been told that people have mistaken the snow field for a river or that they can't recognize where it was taken (ask me if you can't tell and are from Moncton... it’s a road I had never gone down myself until this photo). It is still my screensaver at work.

The second photo I want to reflect on is this bird that landed in my hand! I was walking in Mapleton and picked up a few seeds from the ground and just hoped it would happen. People feed the birds and wildlife there so much that they have practically no issue landing on you! What I really like about the photo itself is that, in editing its counterpart (in color and where the bird is not in motion), I found it boring. But with this one, with the bird's wings moving and the color profile changing, I found it became very interesting. I see an odd, otherworldly creature in my hand…

This last photo that I really dig is of some boats in the harbour in Alma. Now, it’s not the most stunning photo, but at the time I found it fascinating enough to turn into a drawing. Later in the year, I began drawing with India ink again and this was one of my first forays into that. Neither the photo nor the drawing is anything special (I think)… but a colleague of mine disagreed. He loved the photo and the drawing so much he bought the drawing and it’s now hanging in his house. Beauty really is in the eye of the beholder.

(What’s great about this being my first drawing using India ink in forever is that I learned a lot and changed my approach for the next one, but still sold this one so I don’t have to look at it anymore.)

See the rest of my photos from last year here. (I also have them all in a zine… a few are still kicking around if you are interested, let me know 😊)

At the time I was inspired by Jason Vong, and ProfessorHines … I would highly recommend this collab between them: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fh6PIafC8wU

Illustration:

In May 2025, I had a lot of fun with my illustration. It started out as a simple pair of drawings… black and white… there's a guy who looks a bit like a TenHun character being shot at with an arrow by a lady with a short haircut… it didn’t and doesn’t mean much… I enjoyed making it and I enjoyed portraying this sort of awkward look between the two… The thing is… although it doesn’t MEAN anything, it meant something to me. It meant I had drawn something that I had fun doing… so I took advantage of that and for the next month or so I kept going… drawing at least one scene per day in this black and white illustrated style. It was fun! I enjoyed it!

My favourites were the ones that represented a feeling, emotion, or situation from my actual life. Though I will not elaborate on specifics here, some examples of ones that still resonate with me are this one:

This one (which is currently the only piece on my website homepage):

And this one:

What I learned is that creating art helps me get things out… helps me express ideas that are important to me and makes me feel good when I share. Along the way, I stole inspiration from TenHun, Max Grecke, Crom, GodsTeethIllustration, Kassandra Lois, Julie Mac, Nara Archive… and many more, but I wasn’t tracking these things at the time haha…

See the other 23 pieces here. (I also have them all in a second zine… a few are still kicking around if you are interested, you can reach out.)

Drawing:

By the end of May, I was drawing on actual paper with actual real tools again… I like illustration but I also like to draw (in fact, I love both and, if you are wondering, I define drawing as on actual paper and illustration as a digital practice… those definitions aren’t legit, but for me… they are). I was having a blast, exploring India ink over top of pencil and even some watercolor over top of my drawings. Mainly, I reproduced my photos as highly stylized line drawings. It was fun to try out this way of working, but I don’t have many reflections apart from the fact that I don’t feel drawn back to this style. I’m glad I tried it though.

I was inspired by the kids I was teaching for Artshine. I wanted to be an artist to look up to—whatever that means…

Painting:

By the summer and into the fall of 2025, I had the itch to paint. That manifested in a simultaneous urge to show my paintings… I started by painting my favourite photo I have ever taken of some pigeons in front of an old TV. At the time, I was very proud of the painting… I still am proud of it because of what it represented, though the actual craftsmanship leaves something to be desired. It represented the urge to show my work, which manifested in having that piece displayed at the Riverview Public Library in July. It got no interactions or visits (even from friends and family), but that’s not important… it is important because, to me, one of the most crucial elements is the sharing. Art does not exist in a vacuum… well, it could, but what would be the point?

From there I painted this crab, partially from imagination and partially from a reference image, to get a slot at the Shediac Art Gallery later in the summer. Again, it wasn’t interacted with as far as I know, but that tells me something… I noted that down. And along the way, I got to chatting with the owner and made a valuable connection! She is a key inspiration for me pursuing my dream of being a full-time artist who will one day run what I like to call… an art gym.

The fall was crazy for me in my personal and professional life… it’s what I like to call: The Time of My Life. I won't get into it here, but a lot changed in me and around me. Around this time I started dating my partner and began exploring painting again. Painting at this time was a process of sharing… not for online followers, not for family, not for a gallery… but for me and for him. The fall was the time I created my favourite work from 2025. These two are at the top of my list because they are fun and loose and not made in the pursuit of displaying them or making money… just for us:

Other things I want to say:

Other artistic endeavours I pursued in 2025 included my first market, attending some local drawing hangouts, teaching for Artshine (and also quitting), making my first zine (and then my second right after), and making stickers for the first time…. and probably other things I am forgetting now.

What I learned from 2025 is that I have a lot to learn and you don’t learn by doing nothing. That’s why 2026 is being kicked off by being a student in the ArtsLink NB Catapult program! First week done and it’s going to be a blast! Much more to come! 

Thank you for reading and if you want to get in touch, my inbox is open!