INFLUENCE 26 is about choosing what shapes you. It’s a conscious act of reclaiming control over what you absorb, while amplifying what genuinely fuels your artistic life. At its core, it’s about honoring your people and your culture by representing your true voice without compromise. Where being a product of your environment was once seen as authentic, today that environment is heavily distorted by modern media, algorithms, and constant consumption. What we experience is no longer purely lived; it’s filtered, repeated, and manipulated.

In this climate, contemporary art risks becoming noise; another layer of propaganda within an already oversaturated system. INFLUENCE 26 pushes against that. It’s about resisting the influx and being intentional about the output.

As a Gen X artist, I find myself confronting the reemergence of narratives that feel recycled. Nuclear fear, censorship, ongoing global conflict, and the persistent denial of basic human rights. These are not new conversations, yet they return with the same urgency, as if lessons were never fully learned. It feels like living through a rebooted news cycle, where repetition replaces progress.

At the same time, the rise of artificial intelligence introduces a new layer of complexity. Information wars have evolved into meme wars. Influence spreads faster, mutates quicker, and reaches deeper. The digital space is no longer just a platform; it’s a battlefield.

Within that, I question the value of art. I question the future of graffiti. I question why people are drifting away from the appreciation of hand-done work; the human mark, the physical act, the intention behind every line.

My work looks forward. In 2026, I recognize that I cannot control the world around me, but I can control what I allow to influence me and that choice defines everything I create.