IN THE STUDIO WITH L.W.D.

What's the story behind the name?

It's an acronym, I like things to be cryptic and people to think they have the right answer to it. Everyone build their own ideas.

What's something people would never guess about you?

I guess if I don't mention I served time, nobody can really tell. But that's really up to people to think what they think. I am just being myself.

What part of yourself are you still discovering?

My creativity, the more I dig the more I understand it's endless.

What's been the biggest surprise about the world since you've been back?

Technology, and the interaction between people. 

What's something about freedom you never take for granted?

Everything, the word speaks for itself. FREE-DOM!

What's something you're curious about that you haven't figured out yet?

How the film producers will help me to make my first feature film.

What's the strangest thing that's ever happened while you were making art?

Receiving a call from my friend Natalie Bergman asking me to join her in Beck's studio, while I was listening to his music.

Do you plan a painting in your head, or do you trust your gut?

It's a combination of both, I spend loads of time finding the right subject, image, or memory, then it comes pretty naturally, like a second nature.

How do you know when a painting is finished?

It never is, but it's important to find limits and put it out there and not listen too much to people's thoughts.

Your work has expanded into sculpture and installations. What can you express in three dimensions that you can't with paint?

The relation I have with sculpture is all about the process. Finding the raw material is a moment I enjoy and cherish, as it gives me the time to develop other ideas and think about my career. 

What's a new direction you'd love to take your art in?

I have been shooting a good number of art videos that I have never presented yet, and I think there is something conceptual that you can only establish with motion. Also there are not many black artists known for their art videos and certainly not my age. I would love to fill that gap for the sake of making more and at a bigger scale. 

What's the most unexpected thing you've learned from working with Mr. Brainwash?

The regularity of commitment to go to the studio, and the relationship Mr. Wash built over the years with art institutions.

When people look at your work 50 years from now, what do you hope they see?

Something timeless that they can still relate to. That's why I chose cars as human beings, as it's like music, or jazz, it is relevant to anyone from anywhere.