This body of work grows out of my long-standing fascination with fashion and retail imagery, images that promise confidence, beauty, and belonging, yet often feel strangely impersonal. I return to these sources repeatedly, not to critique them outright, but to sit with their contradictions. The figures are built slowly through layered marks and revisions. I allow parts of the image to dissolve or remain unresolved, trusting that what is left unfinished can feel more honest than what is perfected. In this way, the paintings function as indirect self-portraits, reflecting how identity is shaped through looking, longing, and resistance. Paint is central to this process. Its physicality interrupts the smoothness of the original image and introduces vulnerability, doubt, and touch. What emerges are figures that feel both present and guarded, familiar yet elusive, held in a quiet space between visibility and self-protection.