A mixed-media triptych on canvas, embellished with 24-carat gold leaf and original school reports from the 1960s bearing judgements such as “below average” and “could do better.” From these echoes of expectation, a phoenix rises — a symbol of resilience, reinvention and refusing to be defined by the words once written about us. What once marked our shortcomings can become part of the story of how we learned to fly.