Each individual painting is different, but through their colors, their process and their political, social and racial context is there a thread of similarity. These paintings stand as representations of our ancestry, our mixture and as symbols of the complexities of our lives as “Americans”, whether that be Native & Indigenous peoples, Black and even European.  The One Drop Rule and Blood Quantum, also known as Indian Blood Laws, are concepts put into legal practice within the United States.  These terms and practices have framed the way we as Americans view ourselves and others in our communities, who is acceptable to be a part of a nation and who is afforded privileges commonly given to Euro-Americans. The individuality of the paintings stand for the fact that there is not one shade of Blackness for instance. There is not one racial category for someone like myself, and there are many NDNs who have not been able to remain in their Nation because the of the system of Blood Quantum.