BLACK IS KING
During the month of February Mila released 8 Limited Edition King and Queen Paintings. These artworks take on the traditional card deck theme by having a set of diamonds, hearts, spades, and clubs. Each set consists of two original paintings and 50 Limited Edition Prints available for purchase.
ARTIST STATEMENT
I want to empower my community by depicting Black People as something other than victims and villains. I recognize that as a young child I was super impressionable, and some of the images/narratives I was shown growing up led me to not only feel less confident as a person of color, but also as if I didn’t belong. This project is my own spin on creative placemaking. I want to take figures that have had an impact on my life, whether deceased or not, and add a little magic to them. This is the reason for adding the crowns, splashes of vibrant colors, and making the pieces into cards. In life and poker, the cards you choose to play always matter. I’m tired of feeling like I have a weak hand, so this time I’m stacking the deck.
FUn Fact : No Pupils
Mila has always believed the eyes are windows to the soul. She wanted to create something that captures someone’s essence, but doesn’t give the entirety of who they were/are away. Especially with this collection and the history people of color of being traded and sold. It’s her way of empowering her community without “selling souls.”
20% of all proceeds go to purchasing Black Children’s Books from black-owned book stores in Grand Rapids and Lansing, Michigan. Mila believes in empowering not only fellow business owners, but also using her art as a means to create change in the communities she spends time in.
Art Prize 2021 Display
MarIah Marshall
Certified Clinical & Transpersonal Hypnotherapist
Rest In Peace Thrones
Additionally, I constructed the "Rest in Peace Thrones" to reinforce positive messages through guided meditation. Preventable situations arise daily for people of color. Some based on an outsiders perceived threat, or an inadequate attention to our mental health. I'm just an artist, but it is my hope that my work can be a creative approach to solve these large scale issues.
This concept came to me while I was driving one day. I was thinking about all the people I've lost in my life, and that friends of mine have lost. We always share our condolences with a "Rest in Peace." BUT...when do we ever rest in peace in this lifetime? I tried to recount the time when I had felt my most at peace, and it was during my hypnotherapy sessions I had after returning from overseas. I had attended talk therapy, and still felt I wasn't making any progress towards real healing. So I called my friend Mariah Marshall who has recently been certified as a hypnotherapist, and we started the work. Hypnotherapy saved my life.
I haven't found meditation to be a popular outlet for people in my community, so I thought this would be an interesting introduction to it.
