Madelyn Raven Shinham, Previously known by Sean Jeffery Shinham, Is a sculptural artist working in Tallahassee florida. Their career has followed the development of a complex personal narrative spanning decades of Growth, Reframing, and Thoughtful Action.

As a child the development of an artistic eye was a core value of their family, providing opportunities to explore creative mediums and develop crucial coworking skills as part of Wave Zone Skimboards a family owned and operated business.

Throughout their early life Sean struggled to grapple with queer identity repressing portions of their identity in order to feel “Normal” often hiding large portions of their identity from those around him. This struggle became a source of hardship for himself and those around him, but often this manifested in wanting to be part of something bigger than himself. Sean found security in the United Methodist Church playing music in bands providing guidance towards others and having realistic reference to right and wrong in the stories of compassion, communion of song and the release of guilt for the actions of his past.

His undergraduate experience at Florida Gulf Coast University, was filled with challenging new ideas, as time continued to find new ways to expand the boundaries of his personal zeitgeist. Still Heavily embedded in the church sean struggled to balance the structure he had built against the growing weight of his identity finding that truth was increasingly complex. Finding inspiration in the history of surrealist artists, he explored modes of communication that left space for ambiguity, large looming creatures and dark textural compositions filled his mind as the reality became a heavy burden he needed to find a way to release.

Rebirth Must Come Before Death

On september 30th 2019, Madelyn broke the news to her loved ones exploring the loss throughout her Graduate Studies at Florida State University. These long inaccessible thoughts and feelings now on display as she shared her narrative without understanding it herself. The looming feelings of her previous compositions taking form as the reality set in, finding that this release was only the beginning of a sort of chrysalis.

This loneliness, amplified by the global shift of a pandemic, provided the space to disconnect from the expectations of her past. Beginning to analyze the dialectical nature of truth and exposure, her graduate studies lifted the veil behind which many hide to maintain power dynamics. The role of the arbiter of truth once again placed in her hands, Madelyn found it difficult to offer value judgements on the complex narratives of her students artistic product, desiring a way to guide others to the tools needed for the reconciliation of their own personal voice.

Post Graduate Madelyn found purpose in providing for the 926 Bar & Grill community, becoming studio manager for the 926 Kitchen feeding others and discussing the lives and challenges the people around her face, while developing structure to display work within a community that holds space for creativity and interpersonal connection.

While Madelyn’s Future remains unwritten she sees it filled with creative solutions to connect others with new ideas and challenge those around her to collaborate with those that might see things differently.