My piece depicts one of my art educators, Nyame, an inspiration to my creativity. Surrounding him are the colors and art that cover Oakland, the city I live in. The combination of vibrant colors, graphic visuals, and splashes of saturated colors bring life to the dark chaotic streets, and I wanted to convey that in my piece. Each word has a specific meaning, some deeper than others. For example, in white is written "Afronaut", Nyame's Instagram handle. Making this piece was very challenging, as I was constantly choosing how to lay down the watercolors to create a graphic yet realistic look. The contrasting subjects bring together two very different styles, which I think brings life and depth to the piece. In total, the process took approximately 8-10 hours, from sketch to finalized product. Many see street art as an annoyance, or a dirty form of vandalism, but I see it as the embellishments that make a city unique, that bring the city to life.

This was an amazing art piece I had the opportunity to make in class.

This watercolor painting captures a deeply personal moment as I lay on my bed, immersed in contemplation about significant aspects of my life. I applied the wet-on-dry technique as I illustrated this piece, employing masking fluid to delicately preserve the star’s brightness in the composition. I intended to evoke a sense of tranquility and intimacy within the artwork which I achieved through using a cool color palette. In creating this painting, my primary objective was to hone my watercolor skills while simultaneously expressing a personal facet of my identity.

This is a cubist inspired painting still life.

“Solitude” portrays the stillness of an elderly man encompassed by a shadow-filled room. His shoulders, burdened by the weight of years, are hunched under the accumulation of time and lost opportunities that have slipped away. Although his eyes are closed, they betray an inner struggle with remorse, depicting a life filled with belated realizations of roads not taken. The expansive negative space around him offers a dual sense of comfort and condemnation—providing a sanctuary for his introspection, yet underscoring the emptiness of his present and the mourning for time irrevocably passed.

Growing up is hard. Sometimes it's easy to forget the little kid that you used to be. For others, it's almost impossible to forget or even stop mourning that version of yourself. This piece highlights how childhood trauma and abuse can linger into adolescence. The image of hands covering the younger self's eyes shows a desire to shield that innocence. The older self's open eyes reveal an awareness of the world. The monochromatic red ties both versions together, emphasizing their connection. Despite occasional disconnect, the inner child persists, reminding us that little kid that lives in you still exists.

“Mourning a Memory” symbolically depicts the act of reminiscing about past experiences.

I drew this because of how pretty I thought mountains were and I really enjoy looking at this artpiece.

This three page comic is about the sole inhabitant of a mechanical sun, represented by a floating spherical ship, and his robot. Alone, the two of them oversee an abandoned Earth in a dystopian future. During their conversation, they give clues about what happened to the barren Earth while tackling the distinction between being alone and loneliness. Although the figure takes on a human-like form and is not treated as a robot, his humanity is neither confirmed nor denied. This brings into question if he can experience loneliness as humans do, if he sees the robot as a companion, or if his hope that humans will return to Earth someday makes him feel not lonely. Finally, the last page ends with an illustration of the mechanical sun above an empty, abandoned landscape to contrast the figure’s optimism with the harsh reality, calling into question the validity of his hope that humans will return and that Earth can be reconstructed. To convey the somber tone of the story, this piece is illustrated in black and white, which reflects the loss of life due to corrupt and polluting human activity, while the color red emphasizes the eerie atmosphere.

This is the short story I wrote about my art piece and how I felt while drawing it .

Nature has always been an inspiration for my artwork, but this time, I wanted to personify her.

I buried Syd beneath a chinese elm.

Portrait of my friend June because I missed her while she was in France.

Brawl is a short narrative film about starting a fight to win a prize. During its production I explored the intersection of stage fighting choreography and cinematography. I wrote, co-directed, edited, and acted in this film.

A human soul trapped in a butterfly.

In this short film, I aimed to capture the essence of a universal experience—growing up—and how the transformations that come with it inevitably occur at a restless pace. The film's sharp cuts and fast pacing were intentional efforts to mirror the whirlwind nature of growing up quickly.

I used water color to make a watermelon.

Fleeting Whimsy is a short film focusing on a girl who is thrust from her dull life into a magical world where she goes on an adventure with a fanciful guide.

Humans are constantly making things that will outlast them, from the plastic goods that don't break down, to the infrastructure of our world, and even the food we eat. Simultaneously, we are always trying to extend our own lifespans, and push our own expiration date back. This piece I’ve made, titled Perishables, is a collection a 4 collages of starburst wrappers and painted food products. A set of 4 worked well, aided by the 4 colors of wrappers. I used stereotypical hallmarks of advertisements—bright colors, bold text, and flashy accents—to enhance the plastic commercialized feeling of our food these days. In each one, I’m able to think through different aspects of processed food, like the way it is preserved in a can or how sometimes it simply doesn’t decompose at all. Inspired by videos of hamburgers that never rot, the expiration dates listed on the side of a can years in the future, and plastic packing all our food can be found in, I was intrigued by the idea that the foods we have grown and processed to sustain ourselves could still be here long after we’re gone.

This piece was inspired by the movie Inception. In the artwork, the woman stares pitifully at the fish trapped in the fish tank, imagining its freedom. But she is unaware that she is just like the fish, trapped underwater. This represents the idea that a person may be oblivious to their own struggles, even as they empathize with the struggles of others.