“Staying Sunnie at Austin and the Ike” is a testament to my obsession with the raw, unfiltered marks of humanity in industrial spaces. As both a scientist and an artist, I am endlessly fascinated by how people claim their place in the world, even in the most uninviting of settings. This piece was inspired by a photograph I took at the top of the Austin Ave. ramp, heading east from I-290—the Eisenhower Expressway, or as we locals affectionately call it, “The Ike.” On the back of a street sign, a vibrant explosion of stickers, especially those by my favorite graffiti artist (@sunnieskiez), commanded my attention. These Stay Sunnie stickers brought a jolt of joy to an otherwise dreary intersection, and I knew I had to capture that energy on canvas. The creation of this piece was an adventure in itself. I started with an acrylic painting of the intersection and sign on a 16 x 20 canvas. When it came time to recreate the sign’s cacophony of stickers, I decided to incorporate a smaller multimedia piece I had previously made—an 8 x 10 collage using photo transfer, rice paper, magazine images, paint, and markers. I cut this smaller canvas out of its frame and attached it to the larger piece. Amazingly, the Art Gods had it that the smaller piece fit perfectly into the larger one, blending in all the right ways. The starburst around the sign, a nod to my love of mid-century aesthetics, emphasizes the power and significance of this urban marker. I used super bright colors to transform the drab reality of the street scene into a vibrant, dynamic tapestry. This painting is not just an image but a celebration of the human spirit and our ability to infuse life and color into everyday spaces. Creating this artwork was pure joy, and I hope it brings a smile to your face and a spark of inspiration to your heart.