I was sixteen when I became pregnant. I knew right away that I was too young to raise a child, but I also knew I wasn’t comfortable with abortion. My decision came quickly: my baby would be adopted… 

Telling my parents was frightening. I dreaded their disappointment and judgment. But even harder was imagining the way others would see me. I imagined friends, teachers, and strangers looking at me and seeing only a pregnant teenager from a rough family…

I resolved not to give in to shame…. Now, looking back, I feel fortunate to have had these experiences so young. They taught me to face judgment without letting it crush me. They taught me that even at sixteen, I could trust myself to make the right decision. Most of all, they taught me that I could stand in the truth of who I was, no matter how others might see me.

-Wrenna

“Painting a portrait is akin to a process of stripping away stroke by stroke, attempting to reveal or discover what is hidden. I think that when all the stripping is done and a work is successful, we are left with something closer to truth, beauty or mystery. These, after all, are the invisible things, enclosed by the flesh.”                                                                      - Dean Bauche

Bauche is a cultural consultant, professional artist, writer, curator, educator, and adjudicator. He has 40 years of cultural and gallery experience as a consultant, Director of Galleries for the City of North Battleford, and the Director and Curator of the Allen Sapp Gallery.