Over the past decade, there has been a necessary social and cultural demand for the diversification of represented identities within the arts. However, I continue to see a lack of bodies like my own represented in most of our visual culture beyond photography and film-based media. For a community that continues to experience deep discrimination and violence, it seems more important now than ever to create a heightened level of visibility for bodies like my own. These paintings challenge my own understanding of my body as well as the viewers. They are protest and they are validation.