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My photography is a practice of witnessing. I use the camera not just to capture what’s visible, but to honor what’s felt—intimacy, tension, care, absence, joy. Each image is a quiet offering, a way of saying look closer or remember this.
I’m drawn to moments that might otherwise go unnoticed: light filtering through a window, a gesture between loved ones, a city holding both decay and brilliance. I often shoot in natural light, allowing shadows and reflections to play an active role in shaping the story.
As an artist and researcher, I see photography as both archive and inquiry. My lens moves with curiosity—sometimes still, sometimes in motion—but always searching for the emotional truth of a scene. My images don’t always aim to explain. They aim to hold space.n text goes here
PhotoPaintings
Photography meets brushwork. Memory meets emotion.
Each piece in this series begins as a photograph—an honest capture of a moment, a face, a feeling. From there, I paint directly onto the surface, layering texture, intuition, and color to reimagine the image through an emotional lens. The result is a hybrid: not quite photo, not quite painting—something else entirely.
These works explore themes of identity, memory, and transformation. They're both archival and alive, blending documentation with expression. No two pieces are alike, and many are created on reclaimed or recycled surfaces, adding another layer of meaning and material story.
Whether commissioned or spontaneously created, my photo-paintings invite viewers to pause, witness, and feel.
Native Tourist Series
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The Native Tourist series delves into the dual experience of being both a local and an explorer within one's own familiar environment. It’s about rediscovering my city and learning to appreciate the small things and views that feel like home. This collection encourages viewers to embrace a renewed sense of wonder and curiosity, urging them to view their surroundings with a fresh perspective. By capturing both urban and natural landscapes, the series illustrates the contrast and harmony between the man-made and the organic, highlighting the richness found in everyday sights.
In pieces like "Streets of Gold" and "Holy Echoes," I explore the hidden treasures within the city, where light and shadow play across architectural structures, revealing unexpected beauty and spiritual resonance. "Liquid Gold" and "Celestial Canopy" capture moments of natural splendor within urban settings, suggesting a seamless blend of the cityscape with the expansive sky above.
"Fenced Illumination" and "Ephemera" delve into the fleeting moments of clarity and beauty that we often overlook in our day-to-day lives, emphasizing the importance of pausing and appreciating the transient nature of our environment. "Guided Beacons" serves as a metaphor for the guides and signs that direct us through both our physical and emotional landscapes, while "Paradise at the DIA" offers a moment of stillness and reflection amidst the hustle of city life.
"Sunset Dreams" encapsulates the theme of rediscovery—how the familiar can transform under different light, inviting a reconsideration of what we thought we knew about our own space. Each photograph in this series is deeply influenced by my creative abstract painting background, which informs my eye as a photographer. This allows me to see and capture the essence of my city in unique ways, bringing out the vibrant interplay of colors, textures, and forms.
Through Native Tourist, I invite the audience to journey with me as I rediscover the cityscape that has always been home, learning to appreciate the small details and vistas that often go unnoticed, but are rich with meaning and history. This series aligns with the overarching themes of "Brush and Focus," as it reflects on identity, self-expression, and the complex layers of our environments that shape who we are.
Shop This Series
Medium: Acrylic and Gold Leaf on Canvas Print
Year Created: 2024
Dimensions: 18" x 24"
Description: In Streets of Gold, I bring the clichéd metaphor to life by depicting one of the streets I grew up on, covered in gold leaf. The work reflects the unique feel of Detroit, capturing the memories and emotions tied to the city’s streets.
Medium: Acrylic and Gold Leaf on Canvas Print
Year Created: 2024
Dimensions: 18" x 24"
Description:
Medium: Acrylic and Gold Leaf on Canvas Print
Year Created: 2024
Dimensions: 18" x 24"
Description:
Medium: Acrylic and Gold Leaf on Canvas Print
Year Created: 2024
Dimensions: 18" x 24"
Description: Moving Back to Detroit as an adult in 2019 gave me a whole new view of my city. Fenced Illumination represents the sense of unknown possibility I felt standing there that day. The abstract markings on this photo represent the sense of unknown possibility I felt standing there.
Medium: Acrylic and Gold Leaf on Canvas Print
Year Created: 2024
Dimensions: 18" x 24"
Description: Ephemera captures the transient nature of life, using soft colors and blurred forms to reflect the fleeting quality of moments. The piece emphasizes the importance of embracing the impermanence of life and finding beauty in its temporary nature.
Medium: Acrylic and Gold Leaf on Canvas Print
Year Created: 2024
Dimensions: 18" x 24"
Description: Guided Beacons reflects the idea of ever-present sources of direction that light our way in times of darkness. The piece represents mentors, guides, and inspirations that help us navigate through life.
Medium: Acrylic and Gold Leaf on Canvas Print
Year Created: 2024
Dimensions: 18" x 24"
Description: Paradise at the DIA celebrates the Detroit Institute of Arts as a place of inspiration. This piece was inspired by a flower exhibition near the entrance during a visit, reflecting the vibrancy and life that art institutions bring to communities.
Medium: Acrylic and Gold Leaf on Canvas Print
Year Created: 2024
Dimensions: 18" x 24"
Description: Celestial Canopy reflects on the infinite possibilities that lie above us. The branches reach out, stretching towards the heavens, inviting thoughts of what could be and the endless potential that surrounds us.
Medium: Acrylic and Gold Leaf on Canvas Print
Year Created: 2024
Dimensions: 18" x 24"
Description: Sunset Dreams pays homage to my favorite time of day viewed from my favorite place. The piece captures the beauty and perspective offered by watching the sunset over water.
The Reclaimed Root Series
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Description te"The Reclaimed Root" is a deeply personal journey into rediscovering and reconnecting with my own heritage and identity, as well as those of the vibrant communities that inspire me. This series draws from my reflections on the resilience and strength of marginalized communities, particularly LGBTQ artists and people of color, whose stories have often been silenced or overlooked.
Inspired by my first paid photography gig with Quadre “REDD” Curry and the powerful work of King Khloe Katz’s “MAD” series, I have been moved to explore themes of visibility, self-expression, and reclamation. Quadre's dedication to pushing forward progressive media that focuses on people of color and the issues they face has significantly influenced my perspective. Similarly, King Khloe Katz’s embrace of rage and its transformative power as seen in “MAD” has inspired me to delve deeper into my own emotions and the process of reclaiming narratives.
In "The Reclaimed Root," each piece reflects an act of reclaiming—whether it’s a connection to ancestral heritage, a reassertion of personal identity, or an exploration of communal ties. I use bold colors, dynamic compositions, and textured layers to symbolize the complexity and beauty of our roots. Gold leaf and glossy accents represent the hidden treasures within our histories, while the use of red conveys both passion and defiance.xt goes here
Medium: Acrylic and Gold Leaf on Canvas Print
Year Created: 2024
Dimensions: 18" x 24"
Description: How I See Me reflects on self-possession and the beauty of being authentically oneself, inspired by witnessing REDD and the larger REDD Movement. The red tones symbolize the Root Chakra, grounding the piece in themes of presence and self-awareness.
Medium: Acrylic and Gold Leaf on Canvas Print
Year Created: 2024
Dimensions: 18" x 24"
Description: The first idea to greet me when I walked into the REDD Experience 2 was the idea that color, fashion and decor can communicate messages in visceral ways. REDD's incorporation of mannequins has always felt intentional to me, but this one spoke to me immediately and said something to the effect of "Never forget that you have the freedom to express yourself and what you see through as many mediums as possible."
Medium: Acrylic and Gold Leaf on Canvas Print
Year Created: 2024
Dimensions: 18" x 24"
Description: Inspired by REDD’s shoes during the REDD Experience, this piece captures the defiance and power in their fashion choices, celebrating the boldness and pressure of movement and self-expression.
Medium: Acrylic and Gold Leaf on Canvas Print
Year Created: 2024
Dimensions: 16" X 20"
Description: Capturing a moment between REDD and his partner, this piece reflects the care and love in their relationship, symbolizing the fragile art of caring for our community members with gentleness and intention.
Medium: Acrylic and Gold Leaf on Canvas Print
Year Created: 2024
Dimensions: 18" x 24"
Description: Shine reflects on self-expression and the metaphor of light, symbolizing the choice to share, shine, and change the spaces we enter. The use of red lighting at the REDD Experience event inspired this piece, which explores the subtle intensity of self-expression and freedom.
Medium: Acrylic and Gold Leaf on Canvas Print
Year Created: 2024
Dimensions: 18" x 24"
Description: Shooting REDD at his reception for his show I curated at The Congregation was a divinely random and perfect experience. Reality Creators reflects on the idea of artists creating realities they want to see, sometimes for themselves, and sometimes for others, capturing the beauty and healing in these creative processes.