Cultural Diffusion

I am currently working on a series of digital paintings comparing New York City, USA (where I was born and raised) to the city of Cali, Colombia (where both my parents were born and raised). These paintings will be done in pairs and will show how I view the two cities' similarities and differences in lifestyles and culture.

These 2 pieces are a mirror image of each other in terms of composition but different in subject matter. I felt the similar compositions would be the best way of showing their similarities while the actions in the paintings would show the differences. Sounds cool right? Of course it does!


For those not familiar with the city of Cali, there are several mountains there. One of the more famous ones being El Cerro de Las Tres Cruces which translates to "The Mountain of the Three Crosses." It's exactly what it sounds like. Three giant crosses on top of a high mountain that can be seen from almost any spot in the city. You can see a picture HERE They reminded me much of the skyscrapers of Manhattan which like the crosses in Cali may also be seen from many parts of the city. Also, bullfighting is a sport that is still practiced in Colombia. A sport I'm not too fond of but still had fun drawing. Ironically one of my favorite landmarks in NYC is the Wall Street bull. I'm glad I found an excuse to draw both things. Enjoy the art and as always comments are welcome!

Photography VS. Illustration

Why not photography AND illustration? I recently collaborated on a project with photographer, Alex Nuñez Caba. He offered his photograph and I contributed my drawing of a figure. Together we created a collaborative fusion of photography and illustration. It was a fun experiment to be a part of and I look forward to doing another one with him or other photographers in the future. You can see more of Alex's work HERE

Photo by Alex Nuñez Caba
Illustration by Christian Castro