The subject of the pool has been present in my work for a very long time. In a swimming class I attended in elementary school, I made a comment that I was tired and wanted to take a break, and the instructor dunked my head under the water. I still remember the scene. The tiles on the pool floor, people's legs, air bubbles coming out of my nose and mouth, and the fear of death. I've been terrified of water ever since, and that trauma shows up in my work in many forms. Swimming pools are a signature subject, often appearing as red, bottomless, or out of water, but always with me at the edge. I'm either teetering on the edge of falling in, diving in from above, or hovering around. There's definitely fear and anxiety, but there's also a strong will to face it.
It also connects to the "Fire Escape" series, the belief that this is perhaps the only way out and that if I am brave enough to jump in, the water in the depths will envelop me and take me to another world.
In this painting, people are hiding in a green forest, by a pool. They know that the large, deep, square pool in front of them is the only way out, but they're still hesitant.
