Fine Art

St. Louis native Michelle Johnson is a visual artist that takes an innovative approach to mixed media collage. Influenced by her passion for Black American art and her interest in the artistic rhythms created by the sampling technique used in hip hop, Michelle aims to combine her artistic talents with her love for music to create a visual platform for discussing ideas surrounding history and identity. Michelle is a graduate of Ball State University and currently lives in Indianapolis where she is often inspired by the local music community that she has grown to love.

Shaunt’e Lewis is a Visual Artist and Illustrator born and raised in Springfield Massachusetts. She currently resides in Fishers, IN where she also works from her home studio. She is a self-taught artist whose work centers around self-identity, black culture, and femininity. She specializes in colorful, bold illustrations as well as murals and original paintings for private collectors and commercial clients. Lewis’ passion for art, education, and entrepreneurship and her unmistakable style has established her as one of Indy’s most sought-after artists. “My work explores the relationship between feminism and the arts while incorporating bright colors and clean lines. I am particularly captivated by the endless facets and abstractness of my culture. I love to hear the different views and personal connections that my art creates. I find it very rewarding to share my passion and artistic talents with others. Through my work, I hope to inspire others to pursue their passions.”

Imagist, Seed Lynn, submits deep listening as a liberation practice. Whether sensually, technically, or artfully applied, Lynn greets the lens as an altered state through which listening and witnessing make voice necessary. This state invades his work, frames subjects with honesty, and in turn, shapes spaces where stories find students. Lynn’s studies concern how we remember ourselves, who that memory honors, and how remembrance itself, in the face of oppression, is a cathartic act of love and protest.

Nathasa Rae is a hand-drawn neo pop realism ink illustrator and watercolorist. She creates mighty fierce warrior women who embrace their inner strength and beauty. These warrior queens are created to empower others to embody their own power and stunning grace.

During a time of combating self doubt and harshness, she created warriors to heal. In the midst of all of this, it dawned on her that she may not be the only one who needed this message. So in her small apartment she started creating illustrations and watercolors to encourage and inspire others to embrace their true spirit.

Justin Brown is a multidisciplinary artist and curator from Indianapolis, IN. He is the founder and director of Hoy Polloy art gallery, located at 3125 e. 10th street, Indianapolis, IN. Justin’s work is research based; ranging from public- private experiments, to government and corporate surveillance programs to archival photographs. Justin paints with data and paper.

His series “Intelligence Countered” highlights FBI surveillance files of persons of interest from the Rabble Rouser Index, Cointelpro, and modern intelligence operations. He collages casework and redacts the papers further with abstract painting techniques to draw the viewers’ eye to the text. Justin’s “Cubist Maps” series is centered around the historic development of neighborhoods, cities, and interstate infrastructures. He collages archive images of landmarks and residents in geometric “maps” to honor a regions history. Justin has installed permanent murals in Milktooth, Rabble Coffee, Beholder, the MLK Multi-service Center in Indianapolis, Fraser Colorado, and the Adams County board of Commissioners in Colorado. His work has been exhibited at Indianapolis Museum of Contemporary Art, Big Car’s Listen Hear, and Hoy Polloy.

Amiah Mims is an ever-growing designer and painter. Residing in Indianapolis, the 29-year-old is a 2015 graduate of Kent State University where she majored in Visual Communication Design and minored in Photo Illustration. She is also a retired KS U collegiate level gymnast and MAC Champion.

Previously, she was a full-time Graphic Designer for the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. However, her need to invest more into her organic artistic talents motivated her to take a leap of faith and branch out on her own. Now she offers a wider range of her creative services as a freelance designer, a professional artist and muralist, under her newly-founded company, Works By Mimsy LLC.

To date, a few of her art career highlights include the Indy BLM Street Mural project (2020), the Indianapolis Recorder building mural (2020), Art & Soul event branding (2022), the Goodwill/Cook Medical 38th St. building murals (2022) and the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Museum “Sleek: The Art of the Helmet” exhibition. She is also a member of The Eighteen Art Collective, a product of the BLM Street Mural, which includes the 18 black artists who participated in the creation of the mural. Her style is flexible and adapts accordingly, depending on her mood or the content of the piece. Amiah has always had the creative talent, but has only tapped into it with intention as of late. Learning to utilize her abilities to their full capacity has been an empowering journey and will continue to be.

A 90s baby, Mechi Shakur is an Indianapolis raised and based. He has displayed art at the Indiana State Museum and made countless murals around the city of Indiana. Painting for five years now and self-taught, Mechi Shakur believes your art is a reflection of you and loves to blur the lines of reality and the imagination through an assortment of color all while diving into social and issues touching many subjects all at once.

Treseme Bryant, a native of Fort Brag NC, was raised in Indianapolis, IN. She is a self-taught artist who was influenced by her father’s mastery and love of art. In her early teens, she was fascinated by fashion illustration and drawing models from magazines. Along her journey, she felt art was underappreciated and cared less for her work, later losing a most cherished portfolio. This decreased her desire to draw again.

Today, she leans toward the love of portrait realism, abstract, and acrylic painting. Treseme Bryant desires to introduce other mediums in the future.

Beatriz Vasquez is a visual ARTIVIST, whose work experiments with the conceptual use of Papel Picado, a Mexican Folk Art. With the manipulation of paper materials she transforms layers of intricate cut paper into murals, creates wearable sculptures, and exhibits large scale installations. Her work focuses on her Mexican-American ancestry, cultural memory, border culture, and current social issues on immigration, human rights and climate change advocacy. Vasquez received her BFA in 2006 from Indiana University’s Herron School of Art and Design.

Gail Patrice Mallory is an American artist and graphic designer from Indianapolis, Indiana. She received a Bachelor of Science in Computer Graphics and Multimedia Development from the Purdue School of Engineering and Technology. Gail also holds a M.B.A. from Prairie View A & M University. Gail currently lives in Indianapolis, Indiana.

While living in Houston she participated in the Citywide African American Artist Exhibition (University Museum of Texas Southern University) sponsored by The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston (2017, 2019). She has also shown her artwork in several group exhibitions.

Largely underrepresented in museums and galleries, “Snuggy Bear”, Dr. Jarrod Nicholas Dortch is part of a movement of Black artists and curators who are hosting exhibits and creating work that shines a light on Black culture. He has been affiliated with Big Car as a Community Artist and Gardener at the Tube Factory Artspace. He is also a member of “The Eighteen”, a collective of local artists who made history by painting the #BlackLivesMatter mural on historic Indiana Avenue in downtown Indianapolis, Indiana. Since this offering, he has been part of exhibitions and programs at the Children’s Museum of Indianapolis and The Indianapolis Art Center, curated “Art and Vinyl” an annual celebration of Black art and music for Big Car and has received several grants to create artworks throughout the city.

His work was displayed on downtown storefronts during the NCAA Men’s and Women’s College Basketball Tournament as part of #SWISH. Currently, his work can be seen in the “Art of Protest” exhibition at the Indianapolis Children’s Museum. Dortch serves as both a professor of communication and a business owner. He owns and operates Solful Gardens, a natural produce provider in Central Indiana that brings quality food access to urban areas that are underserved with an overall focus on food equity. He also has created “Snuggy Bear Presents’…” as a way to further disrupt the status quo of contemporary and fine art. With roots in art, community, and education, Snuggy Bear is leveraging these disciplines to help promote personal and communal growth one bespoke curation at a time.

Pope Gaskine, an Indianapolis native, is a professional artist specializing in acrylic and oil canvas artist. Gaskine is also an Indiana Member of the Eighteen Art Collective and is a published Professional Esthesia Artist.

Brochevski (Amai Rawls Jr.) b.2000 is an American artist who creates collages using hand-cut U.S. currency to place a monetary value on the emotional rollercoaster that is life. He only uses real and 100% authentic currency to create his artworks, adding that the authenticity further validates his subject matter and dedication to his work.
Brochevski uses the mutilated currency to recreate scenes from art history and his own life, paying homage to some of his favorite artists, while also telling a story where every character is played by George Washington. The surreal landscapes and vignettes featured in his work explore a wide range of the emotional components of human-life, while often questioning society’s overemphasis on materialism and underemphasis on mental health.

Dana Powell-Smith is a multi-faceted artist. She works with Acrylics on Canvas, Multi-Media Art, and Digital Art. Dana honors her family and lineage through her process.

As a wife, mother, and grandmother, Dana understands the power of art in generational healing and in attaining freedom.

As the Granddaughter of Harlem Renaissance artist Georgette Seabrooke Powell, Dana was immersed in the art world from a young age. Her sweetest childhood memories were in joining her grandmother in DC as she activated in public spaces and in painting alongside other children, on the sidewalk and in the park.

Dana continued to paint in private for more than a decade but never imagined her work would travel beyond her own home. After a traumatic brain injury almost thirty years ago, Dana laid her brush down for many years when Doctors told her she would not be able to work again. Rather than acquiesce to their limitations, Dana pushed herself to regain her normal life, relearning how to walk again and even pursuing a new collegiate degree.

Dana was never one to be told what she can and cannot do. She is a published Artist and an Award-Winning Artist, with art displayed inside the Circle Centre Mall in Indianapolis (public art).

Soon after the televised police killings of our Black men, Dana moved back to the canvas to process her anger and grief. She has painted every day since. Dana was born and raised in the suburbs of New York. Dana now calls Indianapolis Indiana home.

FITZ is an artist from Indianapolis, specializing in cartoon, acrylic, oil, character design, digital design, and more. He is also is a member of The Eighteen Arts Collective. Growing up, FITZ bounced around from school to school until he went down south his senior year of high school. While in Florida he graduated from high school, and was blessed with a college scholarship to Broward CC. There, he  took his first art class ever, which was figure drawing. It opened his eyes to new things as he was surrounded by other artists and able to see different styles.

The main character of the brand is MOOD, which is a product of his emotions. 

Mirvia Sol Eckert is a Puerto Rican acrylic artist working in Indianapolis. Celebrating beauty is the fundamental concept unifying all her work. She captures beauty in small moments of observation, in close-up details found in nature, in moments of emotional turmoil & sorrow. She creates in vibrantly colored compositions, or in dramatic grayscale pieces. She uses forms, shapes that are stylized with crisp edges or outlines. Many aspects of her life find their way into her paintings: her Puerto Rican heritage, spirituality, love of family, friends, & fascination with nature. She’s been exhibiting her work since 2009 throughout Indianapolis, Central Indiana, Chicago. Her art can be found in homes throughout the U.S., Puerto Rico, and Spain.

Arria (V. Knox) is a multifaceted and accomplished artist, renowned for her exceptional talent and creative vision as a director, set designer, portrait and fashion photographer. With over a decade of experience in the industry, Arria has become a prominent figure in the artistic community, particularly in the Midwest region of the United States. Her dedication to providing unparalleled art direction for creatives has earned her a reputation as a guiding force for fellow artists seeking to elevate their work to new heights.

Yeabsera Tabb is a multi-disciplinary artist who works with printmaking, sculpture, textiles, mixed media, sound, and video immersive experiences. She explores themes of place, identity, freedom, and immigration. She draws inspiration from patterns seen in her African heritage, lived experiences, history, individual and collective memory, and nature. She’s worked with wood, ethiopian textiles, found objects, various natural dyes, and embroidery to illustrate the tension of time and memory tied to physical places, and our identity embedded in our upbringing, and built environment.

A 90’s baby, Demetrius Green (aka- Mechi Shakur) is an Indianapolis artist that has displayed art all around the city. He has been painting for five years and is completely self taught. Mechi Shakur believes your art is a reflection of you and loves to blur the lines of reality and imagination through an assortment of color. He also enjoys using his art to challenge social issues.

Donyá Collins, Indianapolis born and raised is a multidisciplinary published poet, illustrator, journalist, artist, and activist specializing in illustration and design. Owner of Art By Yay, graduated from Indiana University with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Studio Art. Collins works in several disciplines including but not limited to illustration, painting both traditionally and digitally, photography, and graphic design. She uses art to explore themes of identity, social constructs, and Black culture.

Eric Agyemang-Dua Jr. is a Ghanaian visual artist specializing in Conceptual-Minimalist Storytelling, mainly around Afrocentrism. He has been an active professional visual artist since 2018, but has also been drawing and sculpting since he was 18 months old. His art brand ‘EA.J’s Studio’ seeks to Connect, Engage, and Inspire various aspects of Human Connection and Social Innovation within various communities.

Courtland Blade is an American artist. Born in 1985 in Terre Haute, IN. Blade attended Vincennes University, University of Indianapolis, and Indiana State University for his undergraduate work, where he studied art. He completed his BFA at Indiana State University in 2008. In 2009 Blade moved to Boston, Massachusetts to attend the School and Museum of Fine Arts Boston in affiliation with Tufts University on a Full Merit Scholarship, where he completed his MFA in Visual art with a focus on Painting and contemporary practices. He lives and works in Indianapolis, IN.

Ashley captures real moments of human interaction through portraiture using multiple mediums to express different ideas. She is a dedicated Visual Artist with a decorated background in a variety of artistic mediums. She is the Vice President of the Eighteen Art Collective and is highly experienced in oil painting and mixed media art. Adept at working independently and collaboratively on projects, and committed to achieving visual innovation and beauty. She is a muralist and an artist-driven by purpose and joy. Her art tells stories of joy and happiness that transcends time and space.

Boxx the artist synthesizes interactive art through paintings, digital art, and installations. She is an Indianapolis-based full-time visual artist practicing for approximately 5 years professionally, from Gary, Indiana.

Boxx’s visual artwork uses acrylic, digital, mixed mediums, and public installations to capture different elements of life from the African diaspora promoting health, wealth, wellness, and celebrating Blackness.

Her art initiatives are to share interactive art and offer art that serves as a connector of community. Boxx has exhibited in a host of exhibits and installed different murals located throughout Indianapolis participating in the High Art Billboard Project, Murals for Racial Justice Project, and the Indy Art & Seek with a community interactive mural installation located at the Martindale-Brightwood Library.

She recently completed serving as an Artist Apprentice for the Bicentennial Major Taylor mural installation, installing a 5-story civic mural. She has severed as Maker-In-Resident for the Ignite Studio at the East Hamilton Public Library in Fishers, Indiana; Artist and Curator for Cat Head Press Artist Residency, and is a 2021 Fellow for the Indiana Arts Commission, On Ramp Creative Entrepreneur Accelerator. Connect with Boxx the Artist on social media @boxxtheartist on all platforms.

Contemporary American artist Mike Graves has been producing art and music in Indianapolis for the last 29 years. Mike uses a wide range of media and subject matter to create pieces with diversity in style and composition. A closer look at his works portrays an intense image-maker, illustrator, and painter showing the real to the surreal.

As co-founder and a core element of BRIDGE Collective, an Indianapolis Arts Collective representing a wide range of cutting-edge contemporary artists and their work, Mike brings over 20 years of successful experience in curating both traditional and non-traditional gallery spaces. Possessing a wide range of knowledge and ability in regards to organizing art projects from conception to completion, he is an essential asset to the Indianapolis visual arts scene.

As a skilled deejay and original beats producer, Mike is available to provide entertainment for corporate events, house parties, and beyond. Spinning, reggae, dub, hip-hop, funk, jazz, soul, and original music; Mike adds his personal musical styling and stellar selection repertoire to any event.

Award-winning mixed media artist, Rebecca Robinson studied fashion design in Atlanta, Ga., and continued her education at North Carolina Central University where she majored in Art/ Visual Communications and graduated with high honors. Her background also includes art history, photography, graphic design, film, and creative marketing/branding. Rebecca was mostly known for her fashion design company PSNOB (pronounced snob) which launched in 2001 but in recent years, has taken a new direction with her craft. In the spring of 2019, Rebecca began the initial stages of forming her nonprofit organization called “ONE ARRT ”, which will become the first black-owned art supply brand that specifically supports all artists, art organizations, art education, museums/galleries, and communities in need who would prosper with proper funding and resources. Rebecca has also contributed to several nonprofit organizations throughout the country by auctioning her one-of-a-kind handbags and fine art.

Kevin James Wilson loves to create fine art. He hold a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Illustration from the Rhode Island School of Design, where he was awarded a full scholarship. While at RISD, Kevin served on Admissions Committee, Graduation Honors Committee, President of the Third World Coalition of Artists, and Chairman of Entertainment as a member of the Student Board. It was also at RISD that Kevin was contracted to execute a portrait of Muhammad Ali for the
International Year of the Child. Kevin presented the portrait to Mr. Ali at the world famous Cotton Club in Harlem, New York. While attending RISD, Kevin was also accepted to The Washington Square Outdoor Art Exhibit in New York City. In the exhibit’s 97 year history, he was the youngest artist ever accepted to the exhibition.

Kierra Ready is an Indianapolis-based visual artist and art educator. After attending Indiana University and obtaining a degree in Health Sciences, she unexpectedly found a passion for painting- finding artmaking to be a form of mindfulness. Since, she has used art as her outlet and a way to inspire others.

Andrea is an artist and has been professionally producing art for around 20 years. She creates public artwork in response to the community, environment and history of the art’s proposed location. Andrea also creates wire mesh sculptures that are kinetic in nature. She chooses materials that are best suited to the site, and she works well in collaborations.

Kevin Nance West is a professional fine artist, art entrepreneur (and art instructor) in the Indianapolis area, specializing in contemporary abstract paintings and portrait art. Kevin is the founder and CEO of West Innovations, which is responsible for custom ‘paint by number’ technology used to service over one hundred seventy-five sip and paint studios and companies (nationwide).

Harriet Watson is a visual and tie-dye artist. Harriet is a member of the Eighteen Art Collective and painted the “A” in “Matter” in the “#Black Lives Matter” street mural in Indianapolis. After the mural, Harriet created Harriet Watson Art as a way to continue the artistry that came from the mural. Harriet decided to incorporate her love for tie-dye and typography to create clothes that started a conversation about social justice. Harriet also likes to paint portraits of herself and others that reflect the emotions that encompass being a young Black person in America. Harriet’s art is often inspired by the works of 70’s Black feminist artists such as Faith Ringgold and Adrian Piper.

Derek Tuder is a Multi-disciplinary Artist, Author, Photographer, and Instructor.

Born in Indianapolis, Indiana, Derek displayed a love for art at a very young age. People began to take notice of his talents which eventually led to a full 4-year ride in college, many 1st & 2nd Place awards, and other opportunities.

His artwork has been published in national & worldwide publications and has been on exhibit at: The Herron School Of Arts +Designs, Arts Center of Indianapolis’ Market, The Indianapolis Arts Garden at Circle Centre Mall, The Harrison Center’s Independent Music + Art Festival 2021, Clowes Hall at Butler University, Broad Ripple’s Chromatic Collective, The Madame Walker Building, Tube Factory, Indiana Black Expo, Veteran’s Memorial Plaza, Indiana Interchurch Center, Indy Festival of Faith, 2018 & 2019 Flavor Fresh Contemporary Fine Art Annual Juried exhibitions, Open Bite Night, “What’s Behind the Doors” exhibition, the Green Men Art Gallery, Sullivan Art Gallery, and the Green House Indy Gallery, Nickel Prate Art Gallery, Lost Dog Gallery’s “Artifacts of 2020” Exhibition, Cleo’s Bodega, Garfield Park Arts Center’s Virtual First Friday, Art 3000, Deviant Art and Virtual Art Jam in Houston, Texas.

He has also been featured on WISH TV 8 News and also their Multicultural Spotlight, WRTV 6 News Story, WTHR 13 News and FOX 59 News promoting making safer streets and reducing the homicides in the City through his artwork and community outreach efforts & programs.

He created his 2020 Vision: Art, Fashion & Music Exhibitions throughout the city until the pandemic hit, so he took the exhibition online to keep his network of artists, designers, entertainers, models, poets, comedians & singers performing during lockdown.

So when the restrictions lightened up & the city slowly reopened Derek created the country’s 1st ever (Trademarked) Mini Van Go Mobile Art Gallery, which is taking over the art world. The Mini Van Go Mobile Art Gallery has been featuring many artists in many regular locations such as: The Harrison Center Independent Music + Art Festival, The Jamaican Breeze, Broad Ripple’s UpLand Brewery, Cleo’s Bodega and countless Festivals & Pop Up Events.

Derek Tuder is currently offering: Paint & Sip Parties, Paint Relays, Beady Bead Parties, Art Classes, Commissioned Art & Photo Shoots. Interested in booking or request the Mini Van Go Mobile Art Gallery Call 317-903-3137 or DerekTuder@gmail.com. See more on Instagram @DerekTuder or visit DerekTuder.com or SoTrendyA2Z.com

Proceeds of art sales are donated to reduce crimes & homicides with www.nobobs.org.

Diante Thomas (aka-Myartyoureyes) brings a unique approach to photography & art. Self-taught in art-photographer/videographer & now as a producer of music has twelve years of experience behind the lens.

David Conner, known professionally as SIK-REEJECT, is an illustrator and writer from Gary, Indiana. He currently resides in Indianapolis. He recently graduated from Herron School of Art and Design.

SIK-REEJECT writes dark comedy and about lessons in self-love. He is the author and illustrator of the canvas webtoons “Rated Teen”, “Misery City”, and soon to come, “The Laugh-ocalypse!”

His work is inspired by Adult Swim, a programming block broadcast by Cartoon Network.

India Hines is a painter who juxtaposes elements of intuitive painting and imagination to visually narrate non-physical spiritual and subconscious states. These presentations of images are directly influenced by their unique experiences as a young adult navigating their personal journey of growth and healing, along with the ever-present pressure to “keep it pushing”.

Kori is an Indy-based digital and traditional artist. She aims to create artwork that curb-stomps tolerable, confining, unimaginative, shallow, and/or submissive depictions of Black American women in mainstream media. Less intense yet just as relevant, Kori also finds joy in creating ethereal, otherworldly art inspired by her earthly thoughts and feelings.

Though Kori had previously cast personal creativity aside in favor of academia, the college grad is ready to return to center, explore, and grow.

Miss Jaws  (aka- Jessica Garcia) is a fine artist, illustrator, zinemaker and animator currently living in Indianapolis. Since earning her BFA in Illustration from Ringling College of Art and Design in 2016, she has continued to work professionally in the art field with a variety of clients. Her work blends themes of femininity, sexuality, struggle, and liberation to tell stories with authenticity and a sense of humor.

Hailing from Indianapolis, “Wavy” Blayne (Blayne McCrary) is a mid-career artist focused on mixed-media and music production. His love for the arts is simply the thing that drives his passion. Pulling influence from Japanese culture and street art, he creates a unique Afrofuturism style that he calls, “Wavy”. Learning through practical experiences of trial and error, and studying the works of Akira Toriyama and Jim Lee , Blayne has worked as a freelance artist since 2010.

Deonna Craig is an Indianapolis-based visual artist and the owner of Art by Deonna. She graduated from Cathedral High School and DePauw University with a Bachelor of Arts in Communication and Sociology. Her eclectic spirit led her down various career paths from production assistant for the Jerry Springer talk show to Insurance, where she honed her leadership skills in Management and Fraud Investigation. After 15 years in Corporate America, Deonna’s creativity and love for adventure caused her to pursue art full-time.

I am a geometric bead artist. My primary method of creating art is weaving beads. Whether it is to be adornment for the body (wearable) or adornment for personal space (sculptural), my art is always driven by and created from a place of geometric spatial exploration and interaction. Thanks in part to blogs, local and global (social media) networking, I’ve enjoyed various creative opportunities, such as being a member of the BeadInfinitum.com Design Team, creating art for the Indianapolis Downtown Public Library’s Meet The Artist exhibit, styling models at several local fashion events, teaching for ReGeneration Indy, teaching at the Bead and Button Show, and creating commissioned artwork for private clients as well as collaborative work with other fine artists. Additionally, my beaded artwork has been published within the Bridges Organization, the Joint Mathematics Meetings, and “1000 Beads”, a Lark Crafts Publishing book.

I have had a passion for handicrafts throughout my life, beginning in elementary school. I became curious about and fascinated with beads at age 13; I would entreat my mother to purchase beads for me while she shopped for fabrics to have clothing made by her seamstress. I taught myself some basic stitching techniques with seed beads, then I began making and selling jewelry to my friends and classmates. Moving quickly forward to about 2007, I became fascinated with three-dimensional beading, specifically made with geometric concepts. Designing and creating with small beads and monofilament, I have diligently explored and engineered components that are both aesthetically pleasing and functionally & structurally sound.

Robert Bentley, a Broad Ripple High School graduate and Indianapolis native, started writing graffiti in High School around 2005-06. Later, Robert Bentley went on to attend college at Herron School of Art & Design for Printmaking & Drawing.

Robert Bentley is employed as a full-time printmaker. Robert Bentley is also a part-time self-employed muralist and fine artist, who also accepts commissions for graphic design work and apparel printing.

Born and raised in Indianapolis, and a proud Eastside resident, Cierra Johnson’s art focuses on identity and the ethereal nature of human existence. A mixed-media artist and designer, she believes art allows people to see themselves and others in a new light, “I am inspired by my community. I try to make work that encourages and reflects the communities that I am a part of.”

Damon LeStat (born Jayden Baskin) is a spoken word artist and painter from Indianapolis. He refers to himself and his artistry as a “snot-nosed, ghetto Picasso”.  As the phrase goes “a painting is worth a thousand words”, he came to the conclusion that any message he has will be better received with less lyrical conceptions and more visual representations. Now with a brush in hand, he paints the images he used to describe so people can truly understand him.

Teresa Vazquez is an artist, writer, dream midwife, and educator of Afro Cuban heritage whose art practice is integrally linked to her dream work. She works primarily in painting, drawing, mixed media collage, and digital media.

Her most recent body of work, #Antibody, an Emerging Series, is a collection of works on paper produced in spring & summer, 2020. These pieces are dreams on the scale of antibodies that attempt to answer the question, “What is the experience of the antibodies as they confront the CoVid19 virus?” They all use liquid media with various resist and hand-coloring techniques. Some pieces feature one antibody figure, while others depict fields of antibodies in dynamic encounters evoking physical battles, ecstatic dance, and unity in diversity.

Teresa has an MFA in Studio Art from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and a BA in Creative Writing from Oberlin College. Currently, she teaches Visual Art and Spanish at the Fort Wayne Virtual Academy and was the former Community Programs Manager and a Painting & Drawing Instructor at the Indianapolis Art Center. She has received 2022 On Ramp Fellowship from the Indiana Arts Commission. Teresa is a mother and grandmother. Her She-Shed Studio is out behind her eldest daughter’s house.

Dai (pronounced like “Day”) was born Dailyn Eades is a painter based in Indianapolis. She received this nickname originally from her mother. She had heard all through her life that “day” is almost symbolic because she reminds people of sunshine. Her unique perspective comes from a cumulation of adversities she has faced throughout her life. Dai was diagnosed with Major Depressive Disorder when she was in elementary school. Although she aims to resemble sunshine, Dai is not neurotypical and has fought depression most of her life.

She stumbled into painting in February of 2022 as a therapeutic tool. Very quickly an activity turned into a hobby and then took on a life of its own. Dai says she has never loved anything as much as she loves painting and it truly has saved her life. Her work is raw and vulnerable. Although at first glance it is often missed, her work has a lot of social, psychological, and political references. Every piece she works on pulls from an emotional place. Color is her favorite component of the process. She thinks her work shows the duality and multifaceted reality of her life.

I enjoy creating arts of all kinds, but my favorite is creating portraits. My love of drawing portraits started long before I can actually remember. I always wanted to be the creator of a cartoon character and have it develop into a cartoon show…maybe one day down the line. I’ve been creating works of art for my personal enjoyment and enhancing my skills continuously after graduate school. Within the past two years, I started creating more commissioned pieces for close friends and family. The few confirmations and nudges from my husband coerced me to share my gifts with the world!

Faith Blackwell has been a full-time photographer since 2011. While working in marketing for the International Masonry Institute, she picked up a camera and discovered her passion for photography. Photography chose her.

Faith is a published photographer specializing in business headshots, commercial, event, and fashion photography. Faith is the official photographer for Dress for Success Indianapolis and was the 2015 featured artist for Dress for Success Indianapolis Stepping Out In Style, the premier fundraiser for the organization.

Erika Smith is a self-taught multimedia artist from South Bend, IN. She draws inspiration from her background of African and Indigenous American heritage to express the beauty and strength within those cultures. Erika’s goal with every piece of artwork she produces is to inspire every viewer to see beauty in themselves and their heritage.

Taylor Cappelleri is an artist based out of West Lafayette, IN. She grew up an Army Brat, traveling the world since age five. Through this experience, she learned a lot about people, families and culture. She says being multiracial (Puerto Rican, Black and Japanese) navigating this world has its challenges but there is beauty in the challenge. Ultimately, we all have our own unique stories and experiences that shape us. As a child, she loved to create art and even attended the Fashion Institute of Technology and received a degree in fashion design.

As life happens, family and kids became her priority and she disconnected from her artistic self. However, when the world shut down in 2020, she used that as an opportunity to dive back into her art. This time, Taylor was more intentional with her creativity as a tool toward healing and transformation. The more she created the more she realized that she has a story to tell that perhaps can help or motivate others to tap into their creative selves.

The following year, she created an opportunity for people to share their own stories with her and have their story transformed into a custom piece of artwork. This led to a residency at The Civic Theatre of Greater Lafayette creating artwork for the 2022-23 play season. In between these commissions, she also teaches group classes to give others the opportunity to work with her and offer artistic guidance. Storytelling, art and creating opportunities for connection is a true passion of hers.