The main purpose of my work is to focus on the perception of individual people. Perception, meaning the way that we view others and the way we ourselves would like to appear. Having the influence of the people that I paint makes the painting more personal to them. The personalized clothing and pose combine to create an image that is definitive of that specific person. I want my work to highlight the different attitudes of African American people and point out timely trends that people follow in terms of their appearance. When people observe the work, I want them to try and figure out who the person is. Not only that, but for others to recognize that people can reveal themselves through their outward appearances and that their identity can sometimes exist there. I aim to produce work that is a culmination of people, not as subjects to paint but as people with their own sense of self.