Home Isolation Feels Familiar: Self Portrait of The Artist

jparadisirn, ,

 

Self-Portrait of The Artist pencil by Julianna Paradisi 2001

This is a little pencil sketch I made years ago, after completing chemotherapy, and my hair grew back in ringlets I could not control. My hairstylist bleached them blonde for me. It resembled Meg Ryan’s hair, and remains one of my favorite hairstyles ever. Being at home in self-isolation during the COVID 19 pandemic feels familiar to me; it resembles the turning inward I experienced during treatment for cancer, with the same uncertainty of what the future might bring.

Published by jparadisirn

JParadisi RN, OCN emeritus, is a multidisciplinary artist with a focus in painting and writing. Her paintings and short stories have been published nationally. She has exhibited artwork in galleries throughout the Pacific Northwest. Julianna is a frequent contributor to Off The Charts, the blog of the American Journal of Nursing as a blogger and illustrator.