Therefore I Am

About the Work

In titling it Therefore I Am, I borrow and reshape the familiar philosophical phrase—placing existence not in thinking, but in simply being. I left my face blank, undefined, and without detail to reflect a truth I live with: I don’t always know who I am, or how to explain myself. That lack of clarity used to feel like a reason to stay silent. But this piece insists otherwise. It reflects the inner rejection I’ve wrestled with, the fear that if I cannot clearly define myself, I don’t deserve to be seen. Yet even in that uncertainty, I exist. Therefore I Am becomes both question and answer—an insistence that I do not need to be fully understood to be present, and that being unfinished does not make me unworthy of being seen. It is a reclaiming of space—for the undefined, the becoming, the not-yet-certain parts of self that still deserve to be shared. I exist, and therefore, I am worthy of being seen.

About the Artist

Ashton Howard is a multidisciplinary artist from Baton Rouge, Louisiana, currently pursuing a Bachelor of Arts at Southeastern Louisiana University, where she focuses on painting and printmaking. Her work centers on self-portraiture as a way to navigate identity, vulnerability, and self-perception. Drawing from personal experiences of rejection and self-doubt, Howard’s practice explores what it means to be seen and to see oneself with honesty. Each piece becomes part of a larger journey toward self-acceptance, reflecting both the pain of self-denial and the quiet resilience of becoming. Each piece reflects her ongoing journey of self-discovery and artistic growth. Through her art, Ashton aims to examine, explore, and ultimately define who she is, while seeking a deeper understanding of how she perceives herself and the world around her.