Although I’ve been a painter & mixed media artist for many years, because of health issues, I took up paper collage in November 2016. As such, I’m still learning this new technique and what it means to me as a creator, but already know I prefer ripping paper to cutting. At first, I ripped because it was easier on my pained body, but then it became cathartic. What I found was that the rips began to have representation; I was tearing away at the layers of the issues I talk about in my artwork like racism, water and sanitation access, and women’s rights. Once torn, the paper became like puzzle pieces of rebuilding and restructuring into an aesthetic that imagines what could be if these issues didn’t exist. However, even when we dismantle the many facets of institutional racism and socio-economic exploitation, things aren’t smooth and pretty. There are still scars of the past, which the rugged look of ripped paper in my artwork represents.