Jaguar Spots, 2021

Digital Illustration.

As someone who has compulsively picked my skin for as long as i can remember, when i saw an artwork of a Dalmatian looking in a mirror and picking their spots it resonated with me on many levels.

Skin picking, along with picking body hair and other conditions is a way for people to self soothe, but also self harm in the long run. Its something I dont even realise Im doing anymore, but during the pandemic and with my heightened levels of anxiety its has been increasing. I will zone out scrolling my phone or reading and an hour later I’ll realise I have been in some kind of hypnotised state where I am just picking and picking and picking.

Metaphorically the piece means dont pick apart natural things about you that you cannot change, as youd never see these creatures picking their spots. In this image i drew a jaguar in my reflection because its the national animal of Guyana and i thought it appropriately matched my interpretation of the original piece. Im really not sure how to combat this habit as my mental health is continuing to hang on by a thread, but I needed to share my struggle.