Much like Pablo Picasso, I invented my own art style. Urban Abstraction's goal is often broad. In essence, Urban Abstraction seeks to provide meaning to abstract concepts like failure, revolution, and promise using architectural shapes, selective coloring, and intentional chaos. Mirage of Prosperity, however, as a mixed-media art piece, remains specific as an allegory for the way humans interact with one another and the planet. Influenced by Art Deco and the visual and cinematic representations of sci-fi in media, Mirage of Prosperity explores the relationship between environmentalism and mass consumerism, especially in the light of the recent century. People have consistently turned a blind eye to the effects of their actions. The towering green structure in the foreground plays as a physical metaphor for the illusion of prosperity — in direct contrast with the drained and mismanaged landscape in the background. While the focus is on the green structure, what I want the viewer to pay attention to is the background. We are so easily beset by the glamour of life that we persistently fidget and forget the very real implications of our existence. My goal in this artwork is to make us aware of the delusions of prosperity that so frequently obscure our vision of society, so that we can make more conscious decisions. These conscious decisions could include reusing more plastic cups, utilizing public transport more often, or even refusing to feed into the onslaught of mass consumerism altogether. As a resident of New Orleans, I grew up in the aftermath of one of the world's deadliest hurricanes. Water has always been an integral part of my life, as it symbolizes the city's history, economy, and culture. However, with climate change fueling more frequent disastrous weather anomalies like hurricanes, flash floods, and tornadoes, water has repositioned itself as a looming threat. This was painfully evident during Hurricane Katrina in 2005, when the destructive power of water flattened homes, businesses, and offices, and a fourth of the city's population never came back. My mom, dad, brother and I stayed however and though I was too young to remember most things, some of my most vivid childhood memories included playing on the abandoned lots my dad worked on after Katrina. Little did I know, the Lower 9th Ward — a predominantly Black neighborhood in New Orleans — was once home to hundreds of Black landowners, now displaced. These unsettling revelations became the catalyst for my curiosity about city-making and design, ultimately influencing my decision to educate myself in art advocacy and urban planning. We are a species obsessed with forward motion, like a ball rolling, convinced it will never stop. The illusion of progress blinds us, while the landscape behind us erodes. Though the illusion of our current society is often depressing, the truth — the mirage of that statement — is that it doesn’t have to be. As a young artist, I see Mirage of Prosperity as not just a piece, but a call to awareness — an invitation to think, question, and create. Art has helped me remain grounded in my values while pushing boundaries, and I hope to continue evolving as both an artist and advocate through my future education. Thank you.

What was once a class assignment, later transcribed into a paper, has evolved into a ceaseless study of the communities I live in and a passion for changing the narrative of how cities are developed going forward. I believe that a deeper understanding of the history of cities is important for everyone because its ability to teach us the dangers of discrimination in government systems, ultimately allowing us to craft more equitable communities. In the past, planning was used as a weapon. Systems like Redlining utilized racist policies to prevent and discourage people of color from finding housing in predominantly white neighborhoods. The results of this system led to heavily segregated businesses and communities that essentially only benefited white people. Today, we can still visibly see its lingering effects of these racist systems, resulting in disproportionate levels of neglect towards predominantly black communities. This realization prompted me to raise the question: How can we reverse the damage caused by this system and assist neighborhoods experiencing disproportionate levels of neglect due to the generational effects of redlining? As a resident of New Orleans East, I, along with the other 80,000 recorded citizens, are burdened daily with potholes, trash, electrical issues, wild pets, frequent water boil advisories, and violence, all because of inadequate infrastructure and planning, and while I partly blame Hurricane Katrina's effects for dissolving the communities security, other parts of Orleans Parish have recovered disproportionately greater, revealing a stark contrast. This neglect makes riding my bike down the avenue impossible, as the streets are often unbearable, putting even my thin bike at risk of falling prey to the gigantic holes in the street. Because of these problems, every conversation I have with locals about their needs quickly escalates into a monologue about what New Orleans East needs. This reveals the strong community that New Orleans East has become in spite of the prevalent neglect. Despite living here for only four years, it feels like a lifetime. This place is real to me because the issues are real, and I firmly believe that urban planning, specifically with someone attuned to the community's desires, holds the solution. When I rode my bike yesterday, I stumbled upon a mound of dirt beside a path leading to the other side of the highway underpass. Intrigued that something was being fixed, I followed it. The previous paths had been overgrown with grass, rendering navigation impossible, but to my surprise, the path led me to discover that a Goodwill had replaced the long-abandoned Lowe's. This filled me with pride for the community I have called home for four years and renewed my purpose to join the team redefining the future of New Orleans East. With this passion, I hope in the future I can be a part of the team that works to restore marginalized neighborhoods and revitalize the standard of equality in planning.

“Success is to be measured not so much by the position that one has reached in life as by the obstacles which [one] has overcome.”-Booker T. Washington. I believe role models shouldn't just be people who’ve achieved a significant level of success; role models I would argue are people who have overcome obstacles. Nobody, from what I’ve gathered has ever looked at a billionaire like Bill Gates or Elon Musk and said:” I relate to them”. This way of thinking especially for young adults has dramatically been altered because of the personal struggles we have ourselves had to face. I mean of course everybody wants to be rich, but do I relate to these people. No. While they are great examples of well-off people, with a quick Google search we can conclude that they were pretty well off to begin with. In other words, success was never not an option for them. Even famous singers like Beyonce or Taylor swift grew up pretty wealthy. Some people are better equipped with the tools necessary to achieve success than others meaning others are more susceptible to not achieving there dreams at all. With that being said as we grow up and encounter many significant changes in our lives whether it be family arguments, moving, divorce, poverty, etc. We commonly seek to be surrounded by people who can in turn relate to those struggles. Therefore this is why I look up to people like Booker T. He was black, stereotyped and passionate, just like me and his life's story esteems me to pursue my own goals in public service. When Booker T. Washington, a slave for the first nine years of his life, says obstacles: he’s I believe referring to those obstacles that put people at a disadvantage even before they are born. Obstacles that are legitimized by an oppressive society, and restrict a person from attaining even the standard amount of rights. An obstacle that may not be physical, but engrained in our systems so much so that they appear to be concrete. In 1856, when Booker T. was born he hadn’t even said his first words and society had already cast him aside. Being born enslaved and Black, didn’t warrant many options for a future; however, we still see another example of Black persistence. Booker T. Washington, inspired to read, took autonomy of himself and learned. He voyaged 500 miles from his home to the Hampton Normal Agricultural Institute in the state of Virginia and worked as a Janitor to pay for his tuition. He denounced racism, established the Tuskegee Normal and Industrial Institute, and reformed many ideas in America about what it meant to black. He is truly a successful man and one of the many examples of how success is not only defined by one’s achievement but “by the obstacles which [one] has overcome.”-Booker T. Washington.

Born and raised in New Orleans my desire to please the needs of my community and restore our public spaces is paramount to my journey as an aspiring Urban Planner. Planning is a public service that brings our communities together, but throughout the history of American planning, the system did not favor the African American community. Redlining was a common act of discrimination used in the late 1800s and early 1900s to segregate people of color and white people. Recently in my journey of learning more about Planning, I became fascinated with its history in our cities as it quite literally it shapes the way we live. With the introduction of the Jim Crow laws in the 1870s, the states were indoctrinated with the idea that whites and blacks could live separate but equal lives, establishing no colored signs in public places and restricting the movement of African American citizens all across America. In the following decades, these laws laid the groundwork for the Racist Practice of redlining - a system in which white realtors would deny African Americans access to areas whose residents were white. Redlining ultimately put people of color at a disadvantage in society. Those white neighborhoods typically housed services not found in majority-black communes. Redlining also pushed African Americans into neighborhoods that put them at risk health-wise as these areas occasionally were also home to toxic industrial facilities- one neighborhood in New Orleans even being built on a superfund sight. These facilities promoted Cancer and other fatal illnesses within the Black community. New Orleans still suffers the effects of this racist system today, which caused thousands of African Americans to be put at a disadvantage all because of the color of our skin. The reason I love designing cities so much is because of Cities Skylines. Introduced to me in 2015, city skylines transformed my perspectives on the world. It opened my eyes to design, art, and most importantly the liberties that come with building cities. This transformative experience imbued me with the passion to create impact and rethink the way our government works, acknowledging our shortcomings so we can press toward a greater future that considers all people. With an education in Urban Planning, I want to help right the wrongs of planning in history and establish new healthy systems for people no matter the race to get housing. This initiative will ensure our communities will never be segregated again creating an inclusive community and assuring everyone has the services they need.