Juggle
Juggle depicts the state of constant functioning as a balancing act between personal aspiration and societal expectation. A female-presenting figure with multiple arms juggles numerous round forms - symbols of the many roles and responsibilities of everyday life: work, family, friendships, body, care work, and self-optimization.
The figure’s body itself is composed of similar circular shapes, dissolving the boundary between subject and task. The spheres she keeps in motion are part of her own form, a visual metaphor for how closely identity is intertwined with emotional and mental load.
Despite its weighty theme, the painting radiates a sense of optimism through its vivid colors and rhythmic composition. This tension between overwhelm and vitality lies at the core of the work: Juggle reflects the ambivalence of a life shaped by the search for balance, adaptation, and the desire for self-determination.
Acrylic & oil pastel on canvas
100 × 130 cm
2023
