TUJ Art Artist Statement:
The focus of my work has been on how the body can serve as a metaphor for dealing with trauma. I have chosen the form of Self Portraiture to utilize my body as a medium in order to ask questions about my own healing process in my post-trauma life. I have always believed that art is a language and can serve as a dialogue between artist and viewer. Art has been a safe way for me to feel overwhelming and heavy emotions and thus can help me take a step forward in my own healing process, perhaps even before I’m ready to do that. By making work that displays my own experience, I hope to create that dialogue with my audience so we can better maneuver through the process of healing together.
Artist Biography:
Sinclair Watkins grew up in Louisville, Kentucky. She obtained a BFA in Studio Art with a Concentration in Drawing and Painting from the University of North Texas and an MA in Fine Art from the University of East London. She was able to learn under 1991 Turner Prize winner Grenville Davey and show work in galleries in east London.
Sinclair has always been interested in how the human body can be used in an abstract fashion to portray conceptual ideas. Many of her early paintings used bone structure with surrealist influence to cope with early trauma. Later, she focused on abstracted charcoal portraits which culminated in a large scale project in 2014 in London entitled DEITIES. This project was the first attempt at tackling the familial issue of addiction.
After moving to Houston in 2014, Sinclair focused her efforts on becoming a tattoo artist, the influence of which can still be seen in her drawings today. After taking some time away from making art, she moved back towards making art with fervor. In 2018 she began painting digitally. She returned to school at Temple University in Tokyo, Japan, where she currently resides. This medium has allowed her to meld drawing, painting, modeling, makeup arts, digital painting, printmaking, and tattooing into her most recent pursuit in self portraiture.
Sinclair has always believed that art is a universal language. Her hope has always been to speak directly to those who have already walked through hell with her own experience, strength, and hope. We are not alone.