This piece is more than a synesthetic translation of a waltz. It is a return to the place where my relationship with music and art truly began. When I listen to this recording of Strauss, I am instantly transported back to being a little girl dancing ballet in my dad’s living room. He would spend the afternoon painting or reading while classical records played on his vintage stereo. I can still see the long wall covered in his paintings and the ones he collected, each framed in beautiful vintage frames. The entire room felt warm and alive.

The sound of the record player was always soft and grainy, and I loved it so much. I would dance until I got tired and then I would fall asleep on the floor next to the stereo. Then he would pick me up and carry me to bed. These memories feel like the foundation of who I am as an artist today. They feel like the early beginnings of my synesthesia, even though I did not have a name for it yet. I just knew that music had colors, shapes, emotions, and movement inside it.

This painting carries all of that. It holds the swirling motion of the waltz and the elegance of ballet. It holds the warmth of childhood afternoons spent with my dad. It holds the grainy texture of vinyl and the soft glow of memory. It carries everything that rises in me when I hear this piece of music.

I am proud to share this work at Art Basel Red Dot Miami 2025 with @sabgallerycollection