WaterWork

Water’s ability to endlessly redesign itself parallels my use of digital tools and clay—mediums that embody infinite potential and symbolic malleability. As our city evolves and technology advances, rapid change often breeds fear and pessimism about the new and unknown. By combining simple claymation with glowing projection mapping, I remember that technology is not merely a rigid machine but a versatile creative tool where the unknown can be playfully boundless and inherently connected to nature. While technological progress is often viewed as inherently opposed to nature and people as divided from one another, a pre-conceptual reality reminds us that we are all three: nature, technology, and creativity. We are continuously reforming ourselves as part of one ever-changing landscape.

I am shortening and re-editing an existing artwork called "The Tourist." The 3-channel video revolves around a defunct sulfur mine in Culberson County, West Texas. For much of the 20th-Century sulfur mining was the biggest extractive industry in Texas outside of fossil fuels. Sulfur, also known as brimstone, is mined through the Frasch process, in which super-heated water is pumped deep underground into elemental sulfur deposits to melt the sulfur so it can be pulled out of the permeable rocks. For this iteration of "The Tourist," I am reformatting the video’s composition so that the projections nest into the inset 'windows' on the Seaholm Intake Building’s bottom floor. I am also adjusting its content to focus on the role of water in the mining process, with particular emphasis on the sludge lagoons and artificial lakes left behind in the desert. I aim to elucidate the vast interconnections of Texas's energy economy and the role those large waterways—like Texas’s Colorado River, which meanders just north of the ruins of the former mine and was a likely source of water for the mine’s hydraulic process—play in this system.

"Light Travels as a Wave" is a 2-minute abstract film born largely from documentation of the piece "Sun Poem," the site-responsive installation currently within the Seaholm Water Intake Facility. Abstractions of "Sun Poem's" red hues reflected on the water of Lady Bird Lake blend poetically with visions of the swaying textiles that glow within the interior of the facility, all framed with ethereal imagery of water and wind movements. "Light Travels as a Wave" will add another layer of dimension and texture to Sun Poem, inviting further conversation about the site's significance within its urban and natural context as the building's future is re-imagined for the public.

Nature is our greatest teacher. My creative practice is inspired by, collaborative with, and reflective of the natural world. Through my work, I aim to spark a deep curiosity about the environment and foster a sense of stewardship of our planet. Born from a sustainable mindset, this piece was crafted from recycled paintings and collages from my studio. As a group, they reflect the diverse patterns and textures that define this multifaceted city. The morphing silhouettes move fluidly between an evolving cityscape, a vibrant natural ecosystem, and a thriving community and culture. "HUMANATURE" is both a celebration of Austin’s dynamism and a timely reminder of our interconnectedness.

Essentials Creative's "Native Waters" is a site-specific video collage exploring and celebrating biodiversity in the Austin area through interconnected waterways and native ecosystems. The piece features local life from the Wildflower Center, Lady Bird Lake trails, and the San Marcos River, including purple coneflower, monarch butterflies, bees, trumpet crossvine, native grasses, prickly pear, and endangered Texas Wild Rice. By weaving together images of aquatic and terrestrial environments, it emphasizes how water connects diverse habitats and organisms in the region's ecosystem. Celebratory of biodiversity, "Native Waters" aims to inspire wonder and environmental stewardship by revealing the complex, interdependent web of life in our local environment. Native and nature-inspired symbols serve as border motifs, enhancing the visual narrative and honoring the region's cultural and natural heritage.

"My Mother’s Garden" is a two-minute excerpt taken from a larger 25min video piece titled "Like Breath Upon My Chest" which explores my mother’s relationship to the Texas landscape after being torn from Puerto Rico, her childhood home. Austin is the shared home of me and my father, but my mother has always found it difficult to find her footing in this arid landscape. She has built a garden in the hopes of tying herself to plants, a way of spiritual belonging. "My Mother’s Garden" explores the meditative aspect of creating a perceived landscape within the boundary of another home. Land connects and binds us to our identity, and on this day, under the vast orange Texas sky, I saw my parent’s landscape co-existing for the first time in the fluttering of mesh, being pulled out and away towards a home that may only exist as myth.

Our projection art piece “Layers like Limestone” unites typography, macro videography of water, ink, rock, video footage of local wildflowers, and imagery of fossils found in central Texas.

The piece highlights the foundation of limestone that is characteristic of our natural spaces in the Hill Country and how that limestone filters the water that humans, animals and plants rely on.

As the city grows and evolves more stories are made- more layers are added, just like the nature of the sedimentary rock. “Layers Like Limestone” asks people to zoom out and reflect on the layers of natural history that the city is built on and how we; just like previous people, animals, and plants, have been drawn to the river and lakes. This story of the land invites us to consider our place in it, what stories we layer into its shared history and how all living things depend on the waters and aquifers.

The essence of this new video work revolves around curiosity, discovery, and life that escapes our attention. I wanted to capture the feeling of being able to swim within this underwater city and share an unseen world. Below the complex urban ecosystem that is Austin, lies another natural ecosystem that deserves equal attention and care. What biodiverse communities thrive in and around these underwater worlds and how do those inhabitants coexist? I think about our role in these delicate habitats and how we might preserve or become stewards of those landscapes as we grow.

"Walking" delves into the everyday experience of life in Austin, TX, where the cityscape is a constantly evolving gallery. As we navigate our urban environment, we are surrounded by a tapestry of street art, glimpses of nature, the ever-present hum of construction, and the relentless flow of advertising and vehicles. This artwork serves as a reflection on the growth of our city and the parallel paths of personal development, highlighting how our surroundings subtly shape our consciousness and self-awareness. Through this visual narrative, I aim to provoke thought on how the rhythm of urban life intertwines with our internal growth, underscoring the impact of our environment on our sense of identity and place.

In nature, flow signifies the natural rhythms and cycles essential for balance and growth.
In creative pursuits, flow signifies the effortless progression of a focused creative state.

"Flow State" explores flow, pattern, and pace by juxtaposing the rhythmic patterns of the natural environment with the pulsing movement of urban life to celebrate the interconnectedness of these elements in our city. Patterns activate the facade within the context of the wider skyline as an homage to the building’s historical role in powering the city. By blending organic and measured imagery in rhythm, viewers are invited to reflect on the waterways and vibrant outdoor spaces that define Austin’s unique urban environment, encouraging a deeper appreciation for the city’s interconnected nature and ever-shifting flow.

In a previous era, the land we now call Texas was the bottom of a vast sea. Crustaceous creatures, now fossilized in the limestone beneath us, offer a glimpse into an ancient world of water. Today, Texas seems anything but aquatic. During our scorching summers, access to water is a prize. We built our town, now deemed a metropolis, on a bend in the Colorado River. We dammed the water’s flow, creating lakes for recreation and power. We tap into deep aquifers and clean, cold springs—our Miracle Water—for drinking and daily comforts. But what if the water runs dry? Would our landscape revert to sand and stone? Although ancient seas and primordial deserts feel far away, reflecting on these extremes fosters a profound sense of gratitude for what we have, and a reminder of why we are here.

"Luna Moth Reflections" is a serene art-film featuring live-action, high-resolution, macro video footage of a luna moth, a beautiful verdant green moth native to the Austin, Texas ecosystem. Projected upon the Seaholm building, the artwork playfully re-envisions the Seaholm building as a large moth unfurling her wings. The visual scale-shift of seeing a small creature like the delicate luna moth projected at large scale facilitates a surreal and dynamic design experience for audiences.

"Night Bloom" consists of footage shot in the lush bat garden at Austin Bat Refuge. Here bats are rehabilitated in an organic garden full of crops, flowering shrubs, trees, and water features. In "Night Bloom," the camera rotates to show alternating perspectives of the hanging bats and camera person.

As Austin has grown from a sleepy college town to a buzzing metropolis, I have consistently used imagery from local rivers, springs, streams, creeks and parks in my artwork. Throughout the city’s history, grass roots efforts have fought to protect these natural treasures. In return, they sustain, fulfill, heal, inspire and engage us. Now, more than ever, it is essential that they are kept safe and secure for future generations.

This short video piece is an adaptation of a long running series delving into the deeply consequential contrasts and connections between humans and nature, humans in nature and human nature itself.

"Night Swim" is a visual meditation on Barton Springs during free swim hours. Fragments of bodies rest, jump, float, and spin through the light on the water’s surface. A night swim at Barton is a weightless rite of passage in Austin. I have stared for countless hours at the specific light at The Springs from 8-10 PM—its glow, its hum, its playful skittering. This visual poem brings the surface and depth of the water into conversation with one another.