This project was born after a recent personal loss. It occurred to me that even though I am now in my 30’s, as a child I’d never really learnt how to deal with grief, with a tide of changing emotions to boot.

Synaesthesia helped me express how I saw each emotion, using mixes of colour to give personality to the monsters that represent my perception of each feeling.

Synaesthesia is a neurological condition that causes the brain to process data in the form of several senses at once. For example, a person with Synaesthesia may hear sounds while also seeing them as colourful swirls - or as abstract shapes, like I do!

I used Procreate for this project, as it was initially just a way for me to personally explore my feelings. As it grew, others noticed the benefits this could have for children with difficulty naming how they feel. I’m now working on enhancing each piece ready for publishing!

I’ve included some of the finalised examples of monsters below, each carrying an abstract written description of how it may feel within the body.

  will soon be made into a book, with the help of those who have therapeutic backgrounds, or have experience with working with children from difficult backgrounds (social workers and the like). I’ll also be making prompt cards from these illustrations for the same purpose.

To follow the progress of this project and other similar works, you can find me on Instagram (@ladygabe), get in touch via my website LadyGabe.com and shop with ease on Etsy.