In March, 2025, I traveled to northern chile and southwest Bolivia, a different but memorable experience. Everything- the view, the animals, the road- is so natural without much human disruption, unlike what I experienced in cities most of my life. I captured the scenes I enjoyed, and through the photographs I am able to recall the memory of the trip. When I returned to Wellesley College, I visited the Davis Museum and saw Lorraine O’Grady’s diptychs, which pair Egyptian sculptures with portraits of her relatives. Through this diptych format, the work activates a dialogue between past and present, connects Ancient Egypt to African diasporic identity, and prompts viewers to engage in critical comparison. This inspired me to make diptychs of the natural world in Chile and Bolivia contrasting the city views that I've always resided in.

The comparison will unfold more like a stream of consciousness. I recently attended a lecture on Chinese art, and this project has stirred something in me—an exploration of how ancient Chinese literati approached creation. Landscape was central to their practice, and in my project as well. There’s something spontaneous in the urge to sketch a view, whether it’s in Chile, Bolivia, or around Boston—an intuition that feels connected to theirs. The working process itself was straightforward, but as I kept working, I realized how deeply it echoed what I’ve learned and understood about art. I hope my work encourages viewers to interpret the diptychs in their own way—to spark connections with their own lived experiences, just as these landscapes resonate with me.