MIND THE BREATH | Denise Gawley

“Most of my watercolor work is done as a meditative practice. I am a hospice nurse, and since completing my doctorate in medical humanities, I have been exploring a transitional phase in my life—both personally and professionally. I also enjoy experimentation while being intentional. Much of my work is informed
by apophatic though—the exploration of that which exists beyond the grasp of words, language, and knowing.

This piece was created using watercolor, gouache, and the use of distress oxide spray. I was amazed at the result and immediately saw the connection of both lungs and brain; it was as if my entire practice came to life in one single piece.”

Denise Gawley is a hospice nurse, scholar, poet and visual artist whose work explores vulnerability, mortality, nature, and the spaces between knowing and unknowing. Her academic work focuses on relational ethics, dignity and the lived experience of dying, while her creative work moves between poetry, watercolor and photography. Gawley is interested in the ways silence, absence and ordinary moments reveal what cannot always be put into words.