The Invisible Visibility series explores an autobiographical history, one of a bi-racial identity that commonly falls into cultural ambiguity. The work references invisible blackness; “one-drop” its counterpart, passing; and “Double-Consciousness”.
At times, I use the familiar composition of a high school ‘yearbook’ portrait to signify the universal awkwardness of adolescence. In this series, lips are dressed with different lipstick colors to reference the act of wearing lipstick, which is for many a passage into womanhood and sexuality. Recreating hair-dos from my personal history as well as those found in popular culture provide familiarity, tension and humor.
Dandelion, 2018, Ink and gouache on panel, 36 x 30 inchesRipened Smile, 2018, Mixed media on panel, 24 x 18 inches There are Nine Secrets and Lies That Make Us Best-Friends, 2017, Ink and collage on paper, 24 x 18 inchesWhale Bone Smile, 2020, Ink and watercolor on toned paper, 24 x 18 inchesShe Wears Stripes Everyday, 2018, Ink and gouache on panel, 36 x 30 inchesTulip, 2018, Ink on paper, 18 x 14 inchesNot All Fruit Tastes Sweet Like Honey, 2018, Mixed media on panel, 24 x 18 inchesMy Broken Rear View Mirror Makes a Siamese Smile, 2018, Mixed media on panel, 14 x 11 inchesAtomic, 2018, Mixed media on panel, 24 x 18 inchesBuck Toothed on One Side, 2017-2018, Ink and collage on panel, 14 x 11 inchesBlindfolded Counting Backyards, 2018, Mixed media on panel, 24 x 18 inchesHappy Reunion, 2018, Ink on panel, 36 x 30 inchesMe Too, 2017, Ink on paper, 24 x 18 inchesVolcano, 2017, Ink on panel, 24 x 18 inchesVibrations of Her Voice , 2018, Mixed media on panel, 24 x 18 inchesMandrillus Sphinx, 2017, Mixed media on panel, 24 x 18 inchesWatermelon Tastes Better with the Seeds, 2017, Ink on panel, 24 x 18 inchesWooden Teeth, 2017, Ink and collage on panel, 24 x 18 inchesCaptive of the Light, 2017-2018, Mixed media on panel, 14 x 11 inchesShe has a Thick Accent, 2017, Ink on paper, 24 x 18 inchesEmerging from the Periphery Like Mona Lisa, 2018, Mixed media on panel, 36 x 30 inchesSmells Like Teen Spirit, 2017, ink and collage on paper, 24 x 18 inchesPink Sunset at the Car Wash, 2017, Mixed media on panel, 24 x 18 inchesSome Fruit have Legs, 2018, Gouache on paper, 78 x 52 inches2017-2018, Artist-in-Residence, studio at Project for Empty Space, Gateway Center (former location), Newark, NJLipstick on Cheetah’s Face, 2016-2017, Ink and gouache on paper, 75.5 x 60 inchesThe Queen of Fruit Walks Hi-Heeled in the Concrete Jungle: Invisible to Some and Obvious to Others (self-portrait), 2018, Ink on paper, 77.5 x 52 inches18 Yearbook Portraits, 2016-2017, 18 ink and collage works on paper, 24 x 18 inches each | Installation view: group exhibition Secondary Sources, Tiger Strikes Asteroid, Brooklyn, NY, 2019 2015 Artist-in-Residence, studio at Joan Mitchell Center, New Orleans, LAInvisible Visibility Snap Shots, 2015, (63) Ink on paper, 10.5 x 6.75 inches each | 73 x 60 inches installed
