Artist Statement

My artistic practice is driven by curiosity. Each piece’s medium, style, and execution are a result of a creative investigation and interrogation of our world. I do not seek answers, but rather intimacy with places of uncertainty. Oil painting is my primary method of exploration, though my practice has led me to acrylic, watercolor, oil pastel, and textile mediums. World-building and expressing my personal cosmology is central to my work. Imagining alternate realities is a radical tool in thinking critically about the present and confronting structures, whether they be political, social, or otherwise, that inhibit better futures. Surrealist elements are motifs in my work, especially those related to astronomy and nature. In championing the surrealist tradition of spirit of inquiry and its introspective focus, a central motivation of my work is for viewers to see themselves in my work, but also understanding our role as threads in the collective tapestry of human connection and the human experience. In divisive times, disentangling ourselves from individualism and fostering collectivism through the arts is critical to our role as artists. Themes of Black and Guatemalan identity, fear, interconnection, legacy, and loneliness are common threads in my portfolio.