I am a proud Filipino American and self-described introvert. My life and artwork have been inspired by many things, including but not limited to cartoons, video games, comic books, movies, Filipino American history, and issues surrounding social justice and equity. I feel like I’ve always been hyper-aware of my Filipino American community and I made it a point to learn more about my community. I majored in American Ethnic Studies in order to better understand the issues that face not only my people and community, but also other groups and communities that share these same issues. Over the years, I’ve organized with Filipino American groups around issues like gentrification, Filipino WWII veterans benefits, systemic racism, and have linked them to issues in the Philippines such as land reform, government corruption, and imperialism. This knowledge shows through in my art as I make a conscious effort to combine elements of Filipino and pop culture into art that brings a perspective of engaging issues of race, class, gender, sexuality, etc. The goal of my art is to create a fun, entertaining way of presenting complex issues and themes, in order to create dialogue that is a catalyst for change.
Watch the mini-documentary, Keeping It Creative.