“I’ve been drawing since childhood, starting even before art school. During art school, I focused on fashion illustration, where I developed my passion for creating portraits. After school, I desired more artistic freedom and just wanted to create what grabbed my attention in my own time and at my own pace. I gradually shifted my focus from fashion to portraits as they felt more personal.“
“I create from my emotions and passion, with the intention to create beauty. I think about how creating portraits initially affected me and it is irrelevant whether they are famous or not.
I enjoy watching classic black and white movies like with Fred Astaire and Gena Rogers and Citizen Cane which somewhat influences my sensibility. Music also impacts my work as it relaxes me, and I feel connection so I play it when I create portraits.
The inspiration for the portrait in this book comes from a striking photograph of LL Cool J. In addition to portraits, I create sci-fi inspired characters. Unlike my portrait work, my sci-fi art is inspired by my imagination. I sometimes imagine what creatures would look like from another world and then I begin to flesh them out. Films like Dark Crystal, the director Steven Spielberg, and Avatar had a huge impact on my sci-fi art. When I create this type of art, I generally explore different types of surfaces, garments, and canvas footwear.”
