We paint our souls.
About Amber DeSilva
My paintings are rooted in allegory. They embrace dreams, memory, music, symbols, and current events. I’m particularly drawn to the cultural narratives imposed on women that both distort and reveal our identities.
An incantation is a text performed to alter reality in some way. It’s a practice often used by women and very often suppressed by the powers that be. I see my paintings as visual charms, casting spells into the world to effect change. Reflecting upon our history and our present, my work is made to inspire, comfort, and connect. Each canvas reflects how we can act against tides that threaten to overwhelm us, divide us, hold us back, and silence us.
My work reinterprets traditional portraiture, expressing visually what my words cannot. Birds may represent the imperative to sing one’s own song or the courage to struggle against powerful headwinds. A woman juggling knives can exemplify the pressing, often risky, need for women to multitask. Vintage newspapers or sheet music collaged onto a work's background can give its subject the sense of being out of time or place.
Please reach out to me with questions— depending on the piece, I may be open to commissions.