16” x 20” acrylic on canvas. Canvas is 100% cotton duck with an acrylic titanium triple primer.

What’s the story behind this painting?

I watched an unusual amount of TV as a kid. Sometimes it was unsupervised and other times it was with a relative or one of my siblings. Regardless, a good amount of TV time was divided towards the news and tabloid TV. When a child starts to watch enough disturbing stories from the media it’s easy to think that the world is a dark and unsafe place. It led me to perceive the 90s in America as a violent decade. I recall countless instances where the media fear mongered viewers about cult leaders, serial killers, child molesters, and terrorists. The news also exposed me to riots, high profile court cases, and acts of police brutality. I still remember the moment that news broke out about the Oklahoma City bombing in 1995. Why I was home in the middle of the day and not at school, I don’t recall but I remember being surrounded by my toys while coloring when the news shared the story. Then there was the OJ Simpson trial, and the nonstop broadcast of the court case interrupted my regularly scheduled cartoons, which forced me to constantly flip the channel for other options. The trial seemed like it would never end. At night we watched “A Current Affair” to get the scoop on other American crimes.

          I was exposed to many strange and horrifying stories through the news: the Waco siege, the LAPD beating of Rodney King, the LA riots, the Menendez brothers trial, and the kidnapping of Polly Klaas, just to name a few. How could a child feel safe when there were constant news concerning people being victimized? I think this left a massive imprint on the way I perceived people for the rest of my youth into adulthood.