LARRY RUHL, USA & PORTUGAL

I am an author, visual artist, and adult survivor of childhood sexual abuse. My visual work often directly reflects my writing. In a sense, they nurture one another. Both are my means to explore trauma, sexuality, gender, and religion. My deep connection to the objects I create allows me to tell a story: a story of the beauty that exists in healing. Some figures are beautiful. Some are disturbing. But each speaks to a certain truth. The truth of trauma, and that healing is possible. They reflect the concept of rising from the ashes. My goal is for my work to speak not just for me, but also for others who have found their way to new paths of emotional freedom. To imagine reincarnation.