My life has affected my artistic journey. Needing to take care of my sister and my mother made for a difficult and abridged childhood. I never really bonded with many people and was mute until the early years of elementary school. The only consistent aspect of my life has been my ability to use various art forms to create what I was feeling. Creating something that held a secret meaning to me about my private thoughts felt less daunting than verbally explaining seemingly simple feelings of sadness. My mother wanted a child for 10 years before being able to carry me to full term. It was lovely being with her, but that's probably because she protected me through much of the darkness. Just when she had decided to leave, in the midst of a divorce, my mother later had my little sister two years after. I think having to care for my mother since she was always ill and making sure my sister had some level of education took away my childhood. When we finally escaped, we were then thrown into the hands of poverty in an unfamiliar state. We made our way down the east coast and ended up in Georgia. My mother didn't have much, but she made a house into a home with what she had. Even after escaping the extreme sides of poverty, I still was detached from a majority of things. Toys were left in their boxes because I was afraid of messing up the only good things I could manage to hold onto. I guess that can be a huge analogy for my inability to remain in the moment. Never able to enjoy time instead just able to feel its suffocating hold as it slips by. The only way I've held onto life up until this point is because of my art. My mother always said it'll take me places. It'll be my way out if only I'll allow it. With my creative work, I explore color and work conceptually with provoking feelings and emotions. Being an artist to me means learning that practice does not make perfect; perfection is unattainable. Instead, practice results in progress as you learn new skills through experience. Believing that you can never learn too much aids in gaining experience from anywhere. In my art as a whole, I enjoy portraying subject matter as otherworldly beings in ethereal-like states that mesmerize the eye. My work isn’t completely grounded in realism rather it plays into a surrealistic usage of color palettes, composition, and subject matter. I use subject matter in an almost symbolic way that leads to the image becoming more than the individual itself. Some of my favorite pieces are in my "Pieces of Beauty" abstraction portrait series. Prior to this series, I hadn't dabbled in abstraction. My work up until that point was at a standstill as I felt shackled by realism. I wanted to capture the beauty, but not in a way everyone else viewed it. I wanted to capture the feeling you get when you don't have your glasses on when you're staring at the person you love most. You can only see their blotch outline as shapes and colors push out from behind them. That feeling you get when your glasses fog up when you're taking a pie out of the oven. Steam makes it almost impossible to see, but you just know it's something to be proud of. That is what abstraction means to me. To capture this feeling with blotches of color layered together to make something beautiful.

To capture this feeling with blotches of color layered together to make something beautiful. "Peonies" is the product of an accident--mindlessly playing around with my paint if you will. My art teacher wanted to introduce the class to abstraction as an art form. Through this, I wanted to experiment with various depths of fields created through textures and mediums. The piece as a whole was my first time going out of my comfort zone as I began to embrace a messy way to portray beauty within a figure. The pieces that followed, “Magnolias”, “Sunflowers”, and “Goldfish” followed the same theme of portraying various forms of beauty. I used acrylic paint to set up a strong foundation for the piece and flowered it up with gouache paint to render them out. I found myself forming a monochrome-like color scheme with each piece. In the end, it resulted in a unique harmony that leads the viewer into a trance. I used gouache due to its flexible nature--its ability to be opaque and translucent led me to find various techniques to further my message of beauty. “Goldfish” in particular is an homage to the beauty of Vietnamese culture as well as a friend. This piece is also where I began to include animals in my pieces to balance out my human portraits. Besides my traditional paintings, I enjoy digital illustrations. I am a part of my Newspaper Club at school and I am the main illustrator for zines that are created. I work with two other people to produce seasonal zines that correspond with newspaper publications. I enjoy the idea of being able to spread my handmade artwork and share a piece of myself with other people. Besides that, I would like to create more artwork that involves mixed media and learn to embrace the process of creating a complex piece. Since I'm a Visual Artist, an artist that has influenced my work would have to be my own Visual Arts Teacher, Keith Perelli. Since being admitted into New Orleans Center for Creative Arts, I’ve had the pleasure of working with Mr. Perelli. At the beginning of my freshman year, I was never given the opportunity to explore art freely due to financial constraints. I often found myself never being able to fully express my creativity. Over the years, he’s taught me a lot about making the most out of what you’re given. This has led to some of my favorite pieces being my abstract portrait series. Overall, with my creative work, I explore color and work conceptually with provoking feelings and emotions. Being an artist to me means learning that practice does not make perfect; perfection is unattainable. Instead, practice results in progress as you learn new skills through experience. I intend to explore the concept of storytelling with my art as I work toward fleshing out my own graphic style. I intend on majoring in Illustration in order to build on my prior foundation and dabble in Creative Writing in order to advance my knowledge in various writing styles. Eventually, I aspire to be able to write and illustrate novels that draw viewers in with a unique style and narrative. I want to be able to introduce heavy topics in a more appealing way such as the importance of identity in America through children's books.

It's hard being an artist. Growing up, the most common question was always what I envisioned myself doing years later down the line. Answers like a veterinarian, lawyer, and even the first black president fell from my mouth with happiness as my mother told me to always dream big. However, what I never truly let slip from my adolescent lips was the fact I could always hear the echoing sounds of art supplies calling my name. My mother used to doodle on empty envelopes while her cellphone was tucked in between her ear and shoulder. Her voice talking in circles, mirroring her repetitive moments on the paper with a blue ballpoint pen. I began to do the same. My mother took note of this passion and pounced at this new opportunity. My mother always had faith in my work and steadily reminded me of my worth. In all my stages of life, I always wanted to create. With every uncertainty, I found stability in my ability to pursue my own world in what I made. I've found satisfaction, freedom, admiration, and fluidity in art. Recently, I've rekindled a love for painting, especially a love for abstract work. Working abstractly pushes you to be loose and reframe from controlling every little detail. It's quite the opposite of my usual working style. It was relieving— exhilarating almost. I want my future to give others the same breath of fresh air. Whether it be through the books I wish to write or classes I wish to someday teach. Art is far too precious to be overlooked, and the feeling is far too fulfilling not to indulge. My dream is to paint my way through my hardships, because it won't all be easy, but it can all be beautiful in some way.