In Empire Reef, a ghost fish drifts past the submerged silhouette of the Empire State Building, now overtaken by coral and marine vegetation. Sunlight filters through the water above, casting long shafts of light over a ghostly cityscape.

This imagined underwater world speaks to both loss and adaptation—where the outlines of a once-dominant skyline dissolve into a thriving reef. The painting invites viewers to consider what remains, what transforms, and how the natural world might reclaim the built environment in unexpected ways.