Joey Hartmann-Dow holds a bachelor's degree in Studio Art with a minor in Environmental Justice from the University of Rochester. Dow's work focuses on "relationships between humans, animals, food, industry, cultures, and landscapes, while focusing on the concepts of "human-ness" and connections." According to the artist "representing humans with images of them invokes cultural tendencies of prejudice, it is impossible to represent the human species with an individual or even a group of individuals. The challenge is to portray humans without race, gender, age, or other general characteristics that separate us from each other. They come across as uncategorized creatures."