Tell a little bit about how you first got into creating art.

I have been drawing and painting for as long as I can remember. As a kid, I loved drawing, coloring, making paper dolls and dresses for the dolls with materials I found around the house. My mom used to sew and I loved to imagine and try to create dresses with the material she bought. As I got older, she allowed me to paint on the walls of my bedroom, allowing me to create and express myself. 

What artists or movements have had an impact on you?

I love the African movement Kika Ọ̀nà (African Dot Painting). In Yoruba, “Kika” means “dot,” while “Ọ̀nà” can be interpreted as “way” or “path.” Therefore, “Kika Ọ̀nà” can be understood as “The Dot Way” or “The Way of Dots". I Love working with dots. I make drawings in pointallism, at a young age I fell in love with the style and have been doing it since. I have always been drawn to putting dots in my work as a main theme or accents of the work. Discovering this really inspired me, especially as a black woman. Discovering this really made me feel connected to my ancestors and my possible family history.

What is your source of inspiration?

My source of inspiration is all around me. Colors, art, other artist, I see inspiration in everything. I have many artists of different genre in and around my life. Sometimes their art inspires an idea. The world is an inspiration for me. My other source of inspiration are artists like Silwia Sweet, Jose Cruz, Georgia O'Keefe and Frida Kahlo. I admire these artists. I love the flowers, the bright colors and the vulnerability they all display in their work.

What themes does your work involve?

A lot of times, my art theme is flowers. I love painting, drawing and taking pictures of flowers. Sometimes, the theme presents itself. It can be fish, water, galaxies. I never really know though it always starts out as a flower, lol. I like to say my paint can be hard headed.

What is important to you about the visual experiences you create?

That it touches the person observing. I see art all the time that is so beautiful it stirs something in me. I want people to feel that when they see my art. I also like to know what they see when they look at it. My art is abstract and everyone has a different point of view. I love to hear it and have it pointed out.

Do you work from memory, life, photographs, or from other resources? Describe your creative process.

All of it!!!! My process depends on what I am trying to accomplish. The one thing that is constant with all my painting process is first picking a color, listening to something positive or funny, and taking a moment to meditate to help spark creativity. Once the paint is on the canvas or paper, I put it on the floor and walk around it for a different perspective so to speak. I want to see it from all angles so I can decide how I want to approach it. With Pointallism, I find what I want to draw then make a black and white photocopy of it. This helps me see all the shading. Then I map out my shade areas and do a basic outline of the features. Once that is done, I take it to my light board and get to work. I use the light board to draw my outline as well as let me know where my progress is and if my dots are correct. I free hand a lot of it, however, the light box keeps me on track.