• Painting of a woman covering the eyes of another woman as they look to the right. A floral wire runs down from the top left corner to the bottom right corner where it bunches up.
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Shielding, 2021.

This work Shielding is the centerpiece of my Self-Haunting Tryptic Series, in which the main theme is about how bodies react within a dark mindset. This series, though personal, shows the mental distress of emotional instability caused by severe depression, and all while being seen by pitiful eyes that can only watch the struggle. Shielding, as its name implies, is about how, through the stages of healing inner wounds and scars, there are ways in which the body tries to protect itself from further harm. When it comes to self healing, there is also a constant struggle of progression and relapse. Through relapse, the mind tries to protect the body by shielding or blinding it to the dangers ahead while the body still mends itself.

Yesenia Avila-Cortez
B.A. Art Practice, 2021 | UC Berkeley Visual Arts |
Yesenia Avila-Cortez is an artist who recently graduated with a BA in Art Practice from the University of California Berkeley. Her artwork deals with loss, grief, mental health, and portraiture. She uses several mediums and often mixes them to portray different emotions throughout her work. Despite the artwork depicting or referring to stages of her own mental health, she hopes viewers will be able to find something of themselves in the work that makes them reflect upon their own lives.