This portrait is part of my Black History Month series featuring important women of color. I chose women who have inspired me, and I plan to add to this portrait series. This painting features Gwen Ifill, journalist and newscaster.

All of my collage papers are hand-painted. I usually begin with a pencil drawing to flesh out shapes and choose the colored papers before I start, in case I need to paint a color that I do not have in stock. Once my drawing is completed, I use tracing paper to draw the shapes, and I cut them using an X-acto knife. The shapes are tacked on with a glue stick in case I need to move them around before gluing permanently. I choose to leave the background a plain shape without decoration. The process can take up to a month or more.