The space between steps
Acrylic on board
119 cm x 84 cm
ARTIST’S STATEMENT
The Space Between Steps explores the emotional dissonance of grief, trauma, and memory through a visual language shaped by illusion, gesture, and brutalist influence. Drawing from the stark architecture and sterile atmosphere of hospitals, her work uses rigid forms to symbolise emotional suppression. Hidden beneath the layers, elusive elements reflect the confusion of dissociation, chronic fatigue, and derealisation that often accompany personal loss.
Acrylic paint, chosen for its immediacy, echoes the relentless pace of life continuing in the face of emotional stasis. The surface imitates patina (the process of creating rust on metal surfaces), a nod to Leana’s earlier explorations of loss by corroding metal with acids, as a means of reconnecting with past emotional processes. However, the absence of corrosive materials in this work ruminates on the permanence of loss: unchanging, inescapable.
The staircase, synonymous with movement, is reimagined as a liminal space — one of stagnation, transition, and existential uncertainty. The source image, taken during a hospital visit to her grandmother, resurfaced latent emotions tied to her father’s passing, turning the staircase into a vessel for personal reckoning and emotional release.
The use of red aims to evoke unease and anxiety. The mechanical blue lines mimic the cold fluorescent glow of hospital machinery, emphasising themes of clinical detachment and emotional fragility.
Ultimately, this work is both deeply personal and universally resonant; a space where self-reflection becomes an invitation for others to confront their own experiences of loss and find connection through shared vulnerability.