Four decades ago, my father walked into a gallery in downtown Mexico City to see an exhibition by Mexican painter Tomás Parra. He would meet my mother while purchasing one of the painter's drawings.

When I turned 17, I was lucky enough to be accepted as the very same painter's apprentice, and for the next four years I would attend his workshop on a daily basis. I would spend the mornings in his studio, and I would go back to my home to keep on working through the evening.

As it hung on my bedroom wall, that drawing would become the focus of most my efforts. I've plundered its themes, textures and characters more times than I care to remember and, needless to say, it remains my favorite drawing in the world. This is the latest attempt to pay homage to it.