Born and raised in San Diego, I grew up around skateboard culture, graffiti art, and an urban lifestyle. I’m a tattoo artist full time and an all-around artist as well. I’m also a father and a husband: there are other humans that I support and take care of, that also take care of me. As a tattoo artist, I’m used to thinking about the living, breathing being in front of me who has feelings and opinions. But this mural is its own thing, all me.

The “E” in the middle of the painting is there to represent both Escondido and Ecstasy. For me, the painting follows a flow and pleases the eyes. It’s what my brain is thinking about in the moment, checked out of reality and invested in the piece. I block out the life around me and let my painting consume me. In this piece, I used the colors black, white, and gold: black because it is always my background, white to present a strong contrast, and gold to complement the red bricks of the alley. I wanted to make this painting something that the viewer would get sucked into, that if he were to walk away and come back, he would find something different.