Growing up in the sprawling suburbs of Chicago, I spent much of my childhood in cars on highways, shuttling between the homes of my divorced parents or seeking refuge from a troubled home. As spaces built for passage rather than belonging, highway landscapes became symbols of both disconnection and mobility. This duality informs my work, which interrogates how infrastructure shapes memory, identity, and the way we move through personal and collective histories. The domestic architecture modeled in this animation are digital replicas of homes that my family lived in dating from the 1890’s to 1990’s.
Drawing inspiration from author and activist Jane Jacobs, with titles that reference her critiques of suburban expansion and automobile-centric planning, my recent work reflects on the infrastructure that maintains American suburban ideals while hinting at its fragility and consequences, including the tragic life and death of my brother, who died in an automobile accident on a suburban Chicago highway.
Eyes on the Street: Pink Houses
3D Animation, 3820 x 2160 4K, 4 minutes, 47 second Loop, 2025
Glass Balloons Series: Intricate Minglings
3D Animation, 3820 x 2160 4K, 6 minutes, 41 second Loop, 2025
The audio includes the song titled “Home, Sweet, Home” which was written by John Howard Payne in 1822 and reflects the homelessness he felt after his mother died when he was 13 and his father soon after. The song was performed by Baker, Elsie — Vocalist — Contralto, and Bishop, Henry R. — Composer, and the version used was recorded in 1914.
Payne, John Howard, Elsie Baker, and Henry R Bishop. Home, Sweet Home. 1914. Audio. https://www.loc.gov/item/jukebox-132864/.
Glass Highways Series: Streetlight
3D Animation, 3820 x 2160 4K, 32 second Loop, 2024