Assembly House. Leeds. 15/10/2024.

Eleni’s first exhibition explores the raw, unfiltered journey of self-discovery and healing. It is all about heartbreak, betrayal, turning pain into purpose, embracing all versions of yourself, reconnecting with your inner child - and most importantly learning to love the little you better.

The title is deeply personal and evocative, suggesting an intimate exploration on self-reflection, regret, and a journey towards self-acceptance and healing. It is a visual narrative that delves into the complexities of love, heartbreak, and the internal dialogue that shapes our understanding of ourselves. Originally written in a separation letter, the title represents a poignant moment of vulnerability and heartbreak. However, this exhibition is not just about revisiting the past; it’s about reclaiming and redirecting that narrative towards self-love and healing. In these works, the artist, turn the sentiment inward, asking herself the same question: How could I have loved myself better?

Eleni’s art uses figures, symbols, text, tones and textures to capture the intensity of navigating self-identity and heartbreak, a painful process that can lead you to a beautiful stage of metamorphosis. Each piece is a visual dialogue with her inner self, examining the ways she had navigated love, loss, and the often-harsh judgments we place upon ourselves. The artworks are not just expressions of pain and despair, but also of growth, resilience, and the ongoing process of learning to embrace change and oneself fully. They are characterised by a blend of warm and cool colours, soft and vibrant tones combined with bold, expressive text that symbolizes the tension between pain and its redemptive power. The interplay of light and dark colours within each piece mirrors the contrasts within our inner worlds – the tension between self-doubt and self-love, between past wounds and the healing present.

 Eleni’s words…

 “I wish I could have loved you better Eleni” is a reflection on the delicate balance between healing from heartbreak and loving yourself. This exhibition serves as a tender letter to my inner self, expressing the emotions and thoughts that often go unspoken. Each piece is a reflection of moments where I felt that I am trying to be kinder, more understanding and more loving to myself.

This past year has been one of the hardest and I have had so many moments of wondering if I am on the right path, if my life choices have been correct – but maybe there is no right path, we are all here to live, experience life, and love. And for that I wanted to resurrect the deep pain within me and give it a place to live that’s not my body. And I let it live in art. I have decided that my body is not a coffin for pain to be buried in. And I have put it somewhere else.

By reinterpreting this letter as a conversation with myself, I invite you to reflect on your own inner dialogues. This exhibition is not just my story, I think of it as a universal journey – one that we all undertake in our own ways - a shared experience of learning to embrace ourselves, flaws and all, and understanding that the journey to self-love is ongoing and ever-evolving. It is never too late to start loving better, even if the person we are learning to love is ourselves.

Through this collection, I, Eleni, invite you into a deeply personal journey – a conversation with my past, a reconciliation with my present, and a hopeful embrace of my future.