Painting this portrait for African Americans of Excellence was an incredible experience. AAOE celebrates the rich contributions of African Americans from Frederick, MD. The yearly event pairs local portrait artists with each of the year’s honorees, and the portraits are auctioned to raise money for the honoree’s charity of choice.
I was asked to be one of the artists for their February 2025 auction event and it was my first time being asked to do something like this. It was an immediate “hell yes” decision for me – it was so surreal to even be asked and it scared the shit out of me, so I was all in.
The artist/honoree pairings were (supposedly) random and I could not believe that they paired me with AAOE honoree, Scott Ambush – a locally born, internationally known musician whose style and vibe perfectly match my energetic painting style SO PERFECTLY. It was kismet.
I’ve learned that intentionally sitting in eyes-closed, deep-breath silence with the idea of a subject’s energies shows me ways it could be represented in a painting. After I researched Scott’s story and read about his art and his passion for people expressing their own creativity, I sat in meditation to see how his energy would show up for me. As soon as I closed my eyes, I saw a vibrant sunrise and sheet music showing up through the solar system. I saw energy vibrating out of Scott’s custom bass guitar, swirling through his clothes and body, and out into the sky. I was immediately excited to get the idea onto a canvas. I loved it.
This painting was presented at the AAOE event at The Weinberg Center in February 2025 and auctioned to raise money for Scott’s nonprofit – The Ambush Naylor Harris Missionary.
The energy of the African Americans of Excellence event was out of this world and it was such a surreal honor to be a part of.
