Inspiration for the shoe: "My love and fascination with optical illusions. One of my biggest inspirations is Akiyoshi Kitaoka. He is a psychology professor who specializes in visual perception and visual illusion using geometric shapes. His work is absolutely fascinating. He's mastered the art of optical motion illusion using colors and shapes. I love interactive art. I wanted to create something mesmerizing and playful."
Color palette: "[The black-and-white brings] simplicity. I love using colors and sometimes get a little crazy with them, but for this project I wanted the tone of the piece to be in the pattern and not the colors. It's a loud print, so I figured toning down the colors would create a nice balance."
"I am very proud to work on a project that gives back to Black communities around the country. That is very special to me."
Coolest sneakers she ever owned: "My first 'cool sneakers' were Vans. I got my first pair in the sixth grade and they were Old Skools, the navy and dark blue colorway. I got them as a gift from my parents because I was trying to learn how to skate. I painted all over them and friends of mine drew on them with Sharpies. I felt really cool. I wish I still had them."
Best feedback she received on the shoe: "Seeing people love the shoe was extremely heartwarming! I received the best comments via DM from different people in my community telling me how proud they are of me and how much I inspire them. I greatly appreciate feedback like this because that's my goal with every art project – to inspire my friends and uplift my community. I am very proud to work on a project that gives back to Black communities around the country. That is very special to me."
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