It Started with a Crocofish began when I was visiting my family home on the Isle of Man. In the summer of 2018. To entertain Daisy, my then six-year-old grand-niece, I drew silly monsters and hybrid animals like a crocofish or banana-mouse for her. One day, while we sat quietly with my father—who was on chemotherapy at the time—he looked over and let out a loud belly laugh at one of the drawings. He thought it was hilarious. Seeing how they lifted his spirits, I asked him for suggestions too. "A man with legs for wheels," he'd say, or "a woman with an elephant's body." I would then embellish them further, like a game of exquisite corpse, and watch as his face would light up. Humor and kindness are at the root of this series. Not merely a form of escapism from the global urgency to reverse the growing divisions, but as a call to individuals to engage in kindness. Such gestures lighten the burden of fellow citizens, however temporary, and relieve some of the stress. Whether it be from a terminal illness, mental health issues, our current health crisis in the age of Covid-19, or general cultural anxiety, hopefully, these acts elicit pleasure as an antidote to emotional and physical pain.

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To learn more about this project, view the archived conversation with the artist and kindness in health specialist Dr. Lené Levy-Storms here.