My phone and three old paintbrushes that, in my opinion, are the reason I manage to get the effects I do (it’s ridiculous, but I can’t work without them).

I often listen to music that makes me feel emotionally connected to what I’m painting - usually a mix of Latin music, soul, and sometimes silence.

Jheronimus Bosch, Frida Kahlo, and Bony Ramírez.

To have my work featured in The New York Times and displayed on the big screens in Times Square.

The Color Purple by Alice Walker or Another Country by James Baldwin.

The way they look at things.

Something bitter or herbal like a negroni or a camomile tea.

That it’s easy or glamorous. Many people don’t see the emotional labor, uncertainty, and sacrifice involved in making a living from art.

Cali, Colombia.

Migrating alone and having to rebuild my life from scratch in a foreign country, in another language.

That not everyone who supports your art supports you as a person.

That my work helped someone feel understood and less alone.

That I have Borderline Personality Disorder.

I hiked for three days up the highest mountain range in southwestern Colombia without proper equipment.

Structure. I still struggle to complete things in a linear way.

I completed my Fine Arts master’s degree with the highest grade possible, in a foreign country, in German, which was the first foreign language I learned (just five years ago).

I’d probably be a biologist.