“Welcome Home” (2017)
by Kennady Rayn
 
Welcome Home was a part of a series of 3 artworks I made for one of my classes while attending OCAD University. This stump and rock exists in the backyard of my parents place. My first pet of my own is buried at the bottom of this stump; a little dwarf bunny named Max.
 
When I could come home from school I would often sit here or at the back fire pit and just stare up into the sky. Take some deep breaths and think “god I hate being in the city”. My parents live just outside of town in the country with a little bit of land. When we first moved to that house I was 12 years old and I hated it. I hated that house for a solid 3 years haha was just absolutely pissed that my parents moved me out of my small town but I couldn’t see the bigger picture at the time of course.
 
Now I don’t know who I would be if I didn’t live in the country. It’s an incredibly peaceful and privileged experience in my opinion to have a bit of land and no neighbours. So when I would come home from the raging city of Toronto, which I also loved parts of very much, I just couldn’t wait to sit outside and only hear my own thoughts.
 
So I decided to photograph this stump and rock to encapsulate the feeling of being home, centred and grounded. I blew the photograph up onto poster paper and for the second part of our assignment we had to alter the original art piece in some way so I decided to paint on the poster. Then for the third part we had to remake the piece entirely and in a different medium so I chose painting of course and made this piece you see here.
 
I hung it in my room in my tiny apartment and it made me feel like I had a piece of home with me even though I was far away. It also made me realize that I belonged at home and not in a big city where I couldn’t go lay in a field and hear myself think.
 
The original photograph that I painted on no longer exists because it burned away in the shop fire last year at my parents place, and maybe in a way that was my home taking back a part of me to keep for itself. I still have this painting and I’m not sure I’ll ever sell it.
 
PRINT DETAILS: 
Welcome Home. 16 x 20 inches. Printed on Hahnemuhle Fine Art Paper. Signed by Kennady Rayn. Numbered Edition of 20.