Commission piece for a photovoice project through York University. The project centers around LGBTQ+ Venezuelan asylum seekers and migrants in Brazil. A wonderful Trans asylum seeker at a refugee shelter we visited in Boa Vista allowed me to photograph her as she was getting ready to head out to the streets to work for the night. I painted her in black and white leaving her makeup in color. Trans asylum seekers often choose to be very visible in the camps as a defense mechanism. Many told us they felt safer being more visible. I wanted to highlight this “armor” in this painting.