Path of an artist

Millar’s family moved to metro Atlanta when he was 2 years old, but brought with them a part of Trinidadian culture that would become central to Millar’s life and art: Mas (pronounced as in “masquerade”), which is associated with Carnival.

“My grandmother and my mom, out of all of the family members [who moved to the U.S. from Trinidad], they were the ones that held on to the culture of mas, and my sister and I have been doing it ever since,” said Millar, who began creating Carnival costumes when he was 6 years old, and today is known as Mas Man in local Caribbean circles.

Millar tapped into his experience creating the intricate and oversized costumes during his free time as a student at Morehouse College, when he would design illusions and walk in gay balls as a member of the House of Balenciaga. He earned the inaugural scholarship awarded by the House of Blahnik, and through those connections secured a job at an LGBT health center in Buffalo, N.Y.

In 2010, Millar bought some supplies from a Buffalo art store, began toying with a scrap of wood that was leftover from one of his house ball costumes, and created a piece that awakened his exploration of himself as an artist.

“It’s not much – it’s really just like an undulating line with tits,” Millar joked. “But