There comes a point as a creative person, where the need to create begins to shift from a place of self-recovery and catharsis to a sacred space for pure manifestation.

You face the depths of who you believe yourself to be. You bring these raw materials to your creative practice to be seen, to be released, to be transformed. 

 Celeste Hutchings, On Becoming: Form + home + vessels of the stars, 2020 Writing, Ink on Watercolour Paper, 2"x 4" – 5cm x 10cm, New York City, USA

Celeste Hutchings, On Becoming: Form + home + vessels of the stars,
2020, Writing, Ink on Watercolour Paper, 2"x 4" – 5cm x 10cm, New York City, USA

 

What happens then, when you empty the repertoire of stories you use to validate yourself? To validate your pain, to validate your joy, to validate your indifference.

You die. You are reborn. You realize you create your reality.

You have an opportunity: To use your ability for creative healing with intention.

I wrote "From + home + vessels of the stars" in 2020, as I was completing my BFA in Photography from Parsons School of Design.

By then I was a year and a half into feeling like I had died, and was figuring out how to be reborn. Figuring out how to create in a manner that provides sacred space for my being. A space for it to unfold and express itself with authenticity.

It was with this state of consciousness that I painted "On Becoming". Then curious, after four years of University culminating in a pandemic, I found myself asking – What next?

 Celeste Hutchings, On Becoming, 2020 Painting, Acrylic & Collage on Canvas, 40" x 72”, New York City, USA

Celeste Hutchings, On Becoming, 2020, Abstract Painting, Acrylic & Collage on Canvas, 40" x 72”, New York City, USA

 

Realistically, I didn't have an answer. At that point, I was uncertain of whether I wanted to stay in the United States long-term or not. So I chose to paint to embrace this rift in my sense of direction with peace and optimism. I chose to paint to welcome the hope and faith that where I am going is finding me. This is where the islands of collage became intuitive components of my style – representing opportunities formed from the intersection of potential energy.

It was while painting this piece, that I realised I would be more than happy to move on to new spaces even if I had yet to discover where exactly those locations were. Making "On Becoming" fluidly brought me to a place of peace around letting go of the known. This is why I paint abstract and colourful flowing shapes. To open myself and others up to the possibilities that exist just beyond rational modes of being.

Once completed, this painting became a sanctuary within my space, I felt calm, assured and nurtured in my embodiment. I found that the process of making the work deepened my relationship with myself, I felt more like me (the reborn version of myself I was raising). So, naturally, I chose to photograph myself as a way of documenting and appreciating this stage of my being.

 Celeste Hutchings, On Becoming: Life is eternal to an internal heaven, 2020 Self-Portrait, Fine Art Print on Archival Matte Photo Paper, 13" x 19”– 33cm x 48cm, New York City, USA

Celeste Hutchings, On Becoming: Life is eternal to an internal heaven, 2020, Self-Portrait, Fine Art Print on Archival Matte Photo Paper, 13" x 19”– 33cm x 48cm, New York City, USA

 

For this self-portrait, "Life is eternal to an internal heaven", I chose to; where a lavender purple to represent self-compassion, highlight my eyes with teal as a symbol for clarity of vision, and hold a Celestite crystal at my heart centre to express a calm alignment with tranquillity and Divine guidance.

On Becoming is the foundational series of my personal style and creative practice. While I will always evolve, I continually work to create sacred space through Written Collages, Abstract Paintings and Self-Portraits.