Unfurling

Dimensions: 13″t x 12″w x 5″d
This piece was originally titled ‘Self-portrait’ because it exposed the emotional disconnect I felt to my legs (literally and figuratively). My legs, previously one of my best features, had become a bunch of bones and knobby joints. About five years after this piece was created, a dear friend who had been by my side since the beginning of my paralysis, commented that the figure no longer seemed to reference that sad, selfconscious person that invoked it. Rather, she felt that the piece reflected the growth and self-confidence I had gained along my journey and that it resembled a Fiddlehead fern—unfurling. With that special boost, I changed the title of the sculpture from ‘Self-Portrait’ to ‘Unfurling.’