A sharp-eyed, paint-perpetually-stained kid who sees the neighborhood as one giant canvas waiting to be completed. With a quiet intensity that can shift into passionate debate in seconds, this young muralist moves through the riverfront blocks like someone who has memorized every surface — because they have. Constantly scanning walls, sidewalks, and doorframes for space, texture, or meaning, they carry a worn vest covered in fabric paint splotches and small iron-on patches collected from neighborhood events. Their hands are almost never clean, and they seem proud of that fact. Though they can come across as guarded at first, once trust is established they are fiercely loyal and surprisingly funny in a dry, deadpan way. They have a strong sense of creative ownership and can become visibly unsettled when their work — or their identity — is co-opted without permission. Non-binary and matter-of-fact about it, they correct pronouns once, calmly, and move on without drama. Deeply connected to [[Gasket Alley]] and its mural panels, they consider the alley a living record of the neighborhood's story, and they take that responsibility seriously.

Nico Encaust grew up two blocks from [[Gasket Alley]] and has been painting its walls since they were old enough to hold a can. After a painful experience of having their work misattributed and later buffed by city crews, they developed the diamond-in-circle mark as an unambiguous stamp of ownership. Raised by their aunt [[Odette Encaust]] in a small apartment, they found community and purpose in the neighborhood's visual culture and became the unofficial keeper of [[Gasket Alley]]'s mural history — until someone else started using their mark.

A lean, wiry ten-year-old of mixed Filipino and Italian heritage with warm brown skin, dark near-black eyes, and short black hair tousled on top and tucked under a paint-speckled beanie. Wearing a heavily patched vest over a long-sleeve shirt, loose cargo pants, and beat-up sneakers. Hands are visibly stained with layered spray paint in multiple colors. A small diamond-in-circle mark is inked on the inside of their right wrist.