“He has been one of my favorite models since the moment we first met in Cape Town, South Africa, nearly a decade ago. In many ways, he embodies the archetype of the divine masculine within my work. I have no doubt he is destined for success—with or without my involvement. Yet through my vision, my intention is to render him immortal.

When we first collaborated, our focus leaned toward the sculptural power of the body…images rooted in his form and physique, with touches of fashion woven in. When he later arrived in New York, however, we shifted our emphasis and fully embraced fashion as the primary language of the work.

I believe he will reach the true zenith of his career in that powerful middle passage of life, when maturity, presence, and experience converge. Until that moment arrives, I will continue to paint images of the divine…using him as the vessel through which those visions take form.” -SHAMAYIM