Intricate work of art adorns new Dallas County government building

MESQUITE, Texas – Intricate tiny details showcasing unity within diversity make up a massive work of art inside Dallas County’s newest government building.
“We looked long and hard for someone who could bring that message,” said Commissioner John Wiley Price.
The simplistic yet bold piece spans three panes, each 18-feet tall.
The installation alone was a major effort.
The new Dallas County Mesquite Government Center is a $38 million building on Gallaway Avenue. It will serve as a connector for citizens, county services, and more.
“The art that is in this building, the public sector has a right not to see what we call bland buildings,” Commissioner Price said.
And that’s where Latrise Sheriff came in with an artform she calls “line art.”
“I’m just grateful my artwork was even worthy enough to be thought of to have in a facility like this,” Sheriff said.
But the Grand Prairie wife, mom, artist, and entrepreneur has never done anything to this scale.
“No, this is definitely the first,” she said.
Sheriff said she didn’t have a vision in mind when she started.
“I knew I had to create a culturally diverse piece with it going into a space like that so the whole time I just turned on my music and freestyle the whole thing. There was no pre-drawing on the canvas. I just went straight to it and got to work,” she said.
Meeting a tight deadline meant Sheriff had to take some time away from her family and everything else.
“I totally had to lock in. I even fasted for that time. I had to mentally get focused to knock it out,” she said. “Every day I tackled two to three hours at a time, pacing it out, taking a break. I even went as far as icing my hands through the process with it being so detailed. I was cramping. My hands were cramping.”
After just three weeks, her masterpiece called the “Essence of Human Life” now hangs in the main foyer of the new building. 
“And I think that’s what we’re trying to drive to, exactly what she has expressed in art,” Price said.
“It’s a very emotional moment for me because this is just, most artists dream of having their piece in a public place,” Sheriff said.
FOX 4’s Dionne Anglin interviewed the artist, Latrise Sheriff, and Dallas County Commissioner John Wiley Price to gather details for this story.