WEBVTT

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Being able to learn

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and dive

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deeper into my culture

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has been a result of

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access to the Internet.

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My name is Ayiana Viviana,

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and I am based in Philadelphia.

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I have been a creative

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for as long as I can remember.

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At the core of who I am,

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I am a storyteller.

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I am a

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Mexican Puerto Rican woman.

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My art

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is all of the pieces of my identity

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put on canvas

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and my culture is a part of that.

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I grew up in an area of Philadelphia

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where the sidewalks

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have these interesting

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curves in them.

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And, it wasn't until

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I did this partnership with Comcast

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that I put two and two together

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and realized

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these lines in the sidewalk

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remind me of the lines in my work.

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And, that was such a

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beautiful connection

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to make.

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This piece really is

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just honoring my beginnings,

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honoring my culture.

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I create with what's called

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neurographic lines.

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And, what that means is

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that I will take paint

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and kind of

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just allow my mind to free flow.

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Everyone sees something different

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and it's really based on

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your psyche—where your head is.

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It allows me to be fluid.

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I strongly believe that

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if it were not for the Internet,

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I would not be sitting here

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right now.

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The Internet has just

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given me access

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to a broader and larger community.

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I want people to know

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it's ok to be yourself,

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be you, be it proudly,

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be it loudly,

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and never allow the environment

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that you’re in

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to shrink you—

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regardless of what

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that environment looks like.