Ana Stapleton
acrylic on canvas, 2026
36 × 48 in, unframed

This piece honors the liminal space that exists between boundaries, be they geographical or ideological.

I grew up at the edge of the Texas border with Mexico, crossing the international bridge over the Rio Grande daily to buy fruit, visit relatives, and take art classes in Spanish, then back across to do homework and watch Charlie's Angels in English.

Our hearty embrace of both cultures created a bridge in my own heart. I wasn't from one side or the other, I had become all of it.

As the waters of the Rio Grande lap its opposite banks, they flow as one body, unconcerned.

Click on image to see entire painting.