Proteus is one of my few acrylic paintings. I usually work with oils, but I wanted to see if I could get a similar result using a faster, less familiar medium. The idea was to step out of my comfort zone, just like the subject of the piece. In this piece, the wave becomes a creature, alive and full of energy. I imagined the Greek god Proteus, rising from the sea, using the water to shape himself. He’s powerful, a little wild, and always changing—just like the ocean.

I painted the wave as if it were him, coming out of the darkness, ready to crash and disappear, only to come back again in a new form. There's a lot of movement and force in this painting. I wanted it to feel like that moment right before something huge happens—when everything is about to break and shift into something else.