I have been painting white people for much longer in my life than I have done for colored people.

I think that an obsession with art history gave rise to the work.

I think that I'm increasingly aware of the fact that in order to work towards any statement that's radically global or universal, you have to start in a place that's radically intimate and particular.

For me, I wanted to create something that's much more driven by a type of selfishness, a type of decadence.

[My parents] met in university back in the '70s. And I didn't grow up with my father. He - they separated before I was born.

What's great about it is that painting doesn't move. And so in the 21st century, when we're used to clicking and browsing and having constant choice, painting simply sits there silently and begs you to notice the smallest of detail.

That's the trouble with, I think, my - the contemporary read of my work. So many people just simply say, "These are pretty pictures of black boys." They're not really thinking about, like, what the whole thing is.