I was born in Washington, DC and raised in Prince Georges County, Maryland. I attended the Maryland Institute, College of Art and the University of New Mexico, where I received a Bachelor’s degree with concentrations in art and architecture. Following school, I lived and worked in a variety of geographical locations before settling in New York City. I lived in New York for over 20 years, working as a fine artist and supporting myself through a variety of art-related jobs that included art handler, nightclub decorator, theatre set and prop designer, decorative and mural painter, graphic designer, and artist’s assistant. In 2001, I moved back to Washington, DC with my partner and have lived in the area since.
My childhood in DC was infused with keen interest in the civil rights and anti-poverty movements, and, as a teenager, I became closely aligned with anti-war, feminist, and gay liberation activism. As an adult, I have has strong identification and ties with LGBT, reproductive rights, and HIV/AIDS activist movements.
I have been in long-term recovery from addiction since 1992. A major outgrowth of my recovery and activism involved the pursuit of a Masters in Social Work in community organizing from Hunter College in NYC, awarded in 1997. Since then, I have worked with grassroots community groups across the country to develop peer programs and advocacy agendas that promote recovery and battle discrimination.
Since I have been in recovery, my work has evolved with newfound sense of purpose and focus, becoming more fused with my activist experience and more directly incorporating feminist and queer sensibilities. In my recent work, I have combined these overriding concerns with a love of paint and glitter, lurid colors, appropriated images, and accompanying text. I use painting to explore personal and political aspects of my life in a context of pop art and culture, creating works that are bold and serious with an edge of irony and humor.