My artwork is meant to tell stories or tell a story, which is to captivate those who view my work and to help people get to know and understand what is going through their minds but also feel it. My art is meant to be a relationship between the artist and the viewer. I never want to profit off of someones misfortune or injustice. It never felt right me. My goal is to help someone, encourage someone, inspire someone, just make someone feel something whether it’s one person or a few. I am able to express what needs to be expressed. I am able to expressed what my anxiety and depression never lets me express. I also believe that as a creative, I can be a productive contributor to our society in some way. I want to continue to push creative boundaries and create art that can’t inspire and empower others and other artists and without that is a world without communication and justice.
As an artist and illustrator, I have always felt unwelcomed and not worthy of my passion. The fact that this conversation exist about feeling welcomed in the art community is a strong indicator that the conventional art world is somewhat bias. As I get older, it does become less apparent but it is still there. I never fit the typical 9 to 5 creative job because I love breaking boundaries and experimenting. The same type of rejection e-mails fill my inbox from every position I’ve applied for. It’s discouraging and makes me feel unwanted. Even with a bachelors and masters degree in graphic design, I still didn’t fit that “mold” that the conventional art world was looking for. Not just because I am a woman of color but I am severely passionate about what I love and even though I would love to make a living doing so I would continue to create art nevertheless. I am someone who suffers from anxiety, depression and Fibromyalgia and these issues are glossed over when in actuality most artist suffers from a mental health issue. I wanted people to see what a black woman can create, what a black woman actually feels and it gives the audience a view that most don’t really see.
Here’s some of my work:
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