Sketchbook: My Girls

My Girls is an evolving series of abstract, fictional portraits of women of color, originally created within the intimate 10” x 10” space of a sketchbook. Each collage draws from scraps of earlier paintings — fragments that once served other purposes but find new life here through recomposition and reimagining.

This on-going series is both personal and process-driven. The sketchbook acts as a space for experimentation, where the boundary between figuration and abstraction blurs. Faces and forms emerge through layers of texture, gesture, and intuition, suggesting presence without relying on realism.

The title, My Girls, is a nod to the imagined subjects within each page. Though these “portraits” aren’t tied to specific individuals, they are representative of women I have known and admired up-close and from afar.

Through reuse and improvisation, My Girls expands my visual vocabulary.

Many of the older collages have been remounted and all of the newer ones (2025 and beyond) are mounted on 10” x 10” heavyweight watercolor paper.