Reimaging, unraveling, and recreating my Grandmother’s rugs. My recent work focuses on Tila Tequila—a 2000’s queer cyber-celebrity who took VH1 by storm with her infamous bisexual reality dating show “A Shot Of Love,” only to shock everyone with a controversial downfall.
Medium: Fabric Paint, Digital Jacquard, Archival Frutiger Metro, Sequin, Glass Beads, Rhinestones
Dimensions: 180” x 80”
Year: 2024
Medium: Fabric Paint, Digital Jacquard, Archival Frutiger Metro, Sequin, Glass Beads, Rhinestones
Dimensions: 40” x 60”
Year: 2024
Medium: Fabric Paint, Digital Jacquard, Archival Frutiger Metro, Sequin, Glass Beads, Rhinestones
Dimensions: 60” x 80”
Year: 2024
I trace Tila Tequila's golden years through adorned and hand-painted textiles, pulling imagery from the optimistic internet aesthetic frutiger metro that echoed through “A Shot At Love’s” era. As I share the lived experience of becoming a cultural virus, otherwise known as a meme, I show images of my body alongside Tila Tequila’s in these textiles.
Medium: Fabric Paint, Digital Jacquard, Archival Frutiger Metro, Sequin, Glass Beads, Rhinestones
Dimensions: 60” x 80”
Year: 2024
Medium: Fabric Paint, Digital Jacquard, Archival Frutiger Metro, Sequin, Glass Beads, Rhinestones
Dimensions: 60” x 80”
Year: 2024
The textiles also pull direct inspiration from my grandmother’s rugs, paying homage to our diaspora. The imagery of a pink gas pump repeats throughout the works, representing danger hidden in plain sight.
Medium: Digital Jacquard, Archival Frutiger Metro
Dimensions: 60” x 80”
Year: 2024
Medium: Fabric Paint, Digital Jacquard, Archival Frutiger Metro, Sequin, Glass Beads, Rhinestones
Dimensions: 30” x 80”
Year: 2024
Medium: Fabric Paint, Digital Jacquard, Archival Frutiger Metro, Sequin, Glass Beads, Rhinestones
Dimensions: 40”x 60
Year: 2024