Sophia Ainslie's exhibition Woven delves into themes of identity, memory, and self-formation through her meticulous painting process. Ainslie builds her artworks through the repetition and accumulation of line, mark, and color, which create rhythm, structure, and a sense of time, reflecting the history of her artistic decisions. She likens her process to natural phenomena like weather patterns and changing terrains, highlighting constant motion and evolution.

Ainslie primarily uses acrylic and Flashe paint on paper, often incorporating sand from various landscapes, grounding her work in physical places. A distinctive element is her integration of photographic fragments, particularly images of beadwork and fabric from South Africa and the United States. These fragments, sourced from her personal collection of inherited and domestic textiles, are symbolic and recontextualized to explore dislocation and new relationships, reflecting a layered existence.

Woven explores the intersection of abstraction and representation, intertwining personal and cultural narratives. Ainslie's interest in hybridity—how different visual languages coexist—is central to the exhibition, acknowledging both the friction and connection within this coexistence. The paintings become a "weaving of self and story," a testament to the artist's ongoing effort to find meaning through artistic creation. This introspective journey reflects the universal experience of being shaped by multiple places and the search for coherence in layered identities. For Ainslie, painting is an act of holding and creating space for memory, movement, displacement, and belonging, addressing the questions that arise from seeking a sense of home in the world.