I paint because art can better visualize the workings of power more powerfully than words or data. Art enables me to create without constraint and engage audiences about topics like abolition, police corruption, or the root causes of gun violence. Muralists who spoke truth to power, like Diego Rivera and David Alfaro Siqueiros, got me interested in art, while abstract painters like Futura 2000 and Agnes Martin have fundamentally influenced my use of color.

My paintings fall into three themes: 1) hidden messages, 2) discoveries, 3) societal reflections, and 3) hidden messages. Hidden messages are paintings that lure audiences into engagement through a striking visual or color that, after engaging the work, ends up opening the viewers eyes to a different view of the world or a topic. Discoveries were mostly in my earliest paintings, which were abstract visualizations of discoveries I made from my sociological research on topics like redistricting and gun violence. Finally, my societal reflections are paintings inspired by photos I’ve taken in Chicago or while traveling internationally that represent current events.

My creative process begins in the digital realm, where I engage with the minimalist interface of R-studio, treating its plot window as a blank canvas. By coding numerous data visualizations—ranging from geospatial mappings to abstract scatterplots—I experiment with plots to produce unique abstract forms. I transpose these initial digital renderings onto canvas or wood panels, either through meticulous hand-painting facilitated by projection techniques or stenciling layer by layer.​ I use various mediums—including acrylics, oil, and spray paint, as well as various applicative tools like spatulas, shoe boxes, or brushes. This methodology not only disrupts the presumed sterility of data, it recontextualizes data as an emotion-rich feature of modern life.