A sea turtle ascends through layered water, drifting past a submerged skyline and a sunken subway car, now overtaken by marine life. In the Wake imagines a reef built not of coral alone, but of remnants from the human world—an allusion to decommissioned subway cars repurposed as artificial reefs. The city dissolves into ocean, where memory and transformation meet. This painting draws from my personal experiences—underwater photography fused with the skyline and sunsets I see daily from my studio—inviting reflection on what we leave behind, what persists, and what slips beyond reach