You Are a Diamond in the Rough
This page features two chapters of my interactive, site-specific installation, You Are a Diamond in the Rough. The original piece came alive in 2016 for an outdoor night show curated by Lisa Rockford at the WhiteSpace Collection. Nearly a decade later, I built a new iteration of it for my 2025 solo exhibition at Bailey Contemporary Arts, where I spent a wonderful year as an artist-in-residence.
This project holds a very special place in my heart. It is simply an invitation for people to pause, catch their breath, and look inward. I ask visitors to pick up a scorched form, drop it into the heart-shaped well, and make a wish. In that small act, the space becomes quiet—a safe corner to feel whatever you need to feel.
Funding for this project was provided in part by the Broward Cultural Division through the Artist Support Grant.
When I first showed this in 2016, I was deeply moved by how people reacted. Seeing visitors of all ages openly share their wishes, emotions, and vulnerability made me realize the piece wasn't just mine anymore; it belonged to everyone who touched it. It became a beautiful, shared remedy for the isolation so many of us carry.
Those unforgettable moments are exactly what inspired me to bring this installation back to life for my solo show at Bailey Contemporary Arts, creating another space for all of us to connect, heal, and remember we aren't alone.
The video below shows a raw, unedited glimpse of the installation in action. I intentionally left the original audio intact so you can hear the real sound of the room—the gentle chatter, the laughter, and the genuine joy of visitors connecting with the piece and each other.