The Return

As a child, I remember taking the long road trip every year back to Sweetwater, Texas, the hometown of my father, my aunt and my grandmother. Growing up in the lush, green, and swamplands of the South, the landscape of West Texas felt like stepping into another world, a mesmerizing place where red earth meets expansive blue skies. This series captures those vivid memories: blistering summers where the relentless sun bakes the soil, creating fissures in the ground, and cold winters that blanket the region in freezing rain and deep, drifting snow. The rusted tin barns and peeling paint on fences tell of resilience amid harsh conditions. The iron-rich dirt, reminiscent of blood, contrasts with neatly planted fields of cotton adorned with delicate puffs of white. Dust devils swirl, and tumbleweeds drift through the mirage of heat rising from the cattle fields. The clattering and rumbling of boxcars echo as they roll along the tracks, while the song of cicadas fills the evening air, hidden within the lacy leaves of the mesquite tree. Through this body of work, “The Return,” I invite you to explore this unique landscape that constantly calls for reclamation. Each painting serves as a window into both the past and present. It is a celebration, not only of West Texas's textures and colors but also an homage to the family ties that bind us to our history. It is about reconnecting with places that hold profound significance in our lives. A powerful reminder that no matter how far we wander, there is always a path leading us back home.