Toxic Waters

In the summer of 2024, while teaching for a youth art camp at Valencia Park Elementary, I witnessed the deep love children have for the ocean. Their paintings of the beach and favorite San Diego shorelines were filled with vibrant blues and childlike stick figure drawings, capturing the joy and beauty of our coastal spaces. But during this time, I also became aware of a hidden crisis. San Diego’s radioactive waste issue. Learning that nuclear waste is stored dangerously close to our revelation that changed the way I see the ocean and my role as an artist.

Since that summer, Stephen has been committed to using his art to bring awareness to this growing danger. His abstract paintings explore the tension between the ocean’s beauty and the silent threat lurking beneath its surface. Through fluid forms, layered textures, and disruptions in color, Stephen aims to reflect both the natural rhythms of the sea and the invisible contamination threatening it.

Art has the power to illuminate urgent issues, and my work serves as a call to action. The ocean gives us life, inspiration, and connection. It is our responsibility to protect it before it’s too late.