The images in this portfolio were honored by B+W and Color Magazine in their 2011 Color Portfolio Contest, receiving a Merit Award. Two photos, "Subcontinent from Silver" and "Silver Over Stripes" were published in the September, 2011 special issue devoted to the contest winners, and the entire portfolio is online here: http://www.bandwmag.com/galleries/color/contests/10/categories/7/photographs/29696. Four photos from this portfolio were also selected for the Detroit Artists Market 2011 Garden Party Show in June of that year.

The Dequindre Cut is a linear park in Detroit. Formerly a rail line laid in a gradually-sloping "cut," that ran parallel to Dequindre ("de-quinn'-der") Avenue on the near east side, the cut has been transformed from an overgrown, vandalized zone to an inviting pedestrian, bicycle, and skating oasis. Space has been reserved along the pathway for future light rail transit. Planners left the old street overpass abutments, which had been tagged over and over with graffiti. The graffiti creates a vivid, colorful counterpoint to the manicured parkway.

The graffiti, in heavy layers, has weathered in the elements over the years. Layers peel away, revealing older tags beneath the surface. These layers create new combinations of color and texture, exploding into new forms that were never envisioned by their creators. These photos explore the abstractions and details that one can discover in the layers.