Devoted to the Young Emerging Artist

Renaissance Fire for The Arts
“Before a child talks, they sing. Before they write, they draw. As soon as they stand, they dance. Art is a fundamental human expression.” - Phylicia Rashaad

To deprive a child of that kind of fundamental expression is to take away their ability to lead with love, compassion, and empathy, in whichever career path they decide to pursue later on in life. Our creative imagination is the only thing that makes us unique as human beings on this planet. It is our superpower, and the simplest, most effective way to activate that power, is through the arts.

 When I was ten, my family migrated to Brooklyn Park, Minnesota to flee the ragging civil war in Liberia, West Africa.  Unlike my peers, I had never attended school before, and I struggled academically because I felt stifled.  The focus was always on academics, with very few career options, and the idea of art as a career path was nonexistent. But once I was exposed to art, it quickly became more than just a hobby- it became my lifeline.

Art has been the one tool, the one thing I was passionate about, that helped me stay out of trouble and develop the social and emotional skills that have allowed me to grow into a successful artist today.  Art truly saved my life-- but the reality is that being an Artist is a largely white, middle-class dream.  For many people of color, a career in the arts is simply unobtainable due to financial constraints, the lack of art education, and opportunity in our communities. I strongly believe NOW is our time to change that.

The vision of the Renaissance Fire for The Arts project is to be the lifeline for the young artists in our communities. It is to help further expand and enhance the vision of making art programs more accessible to young people of color in underserved communities. This will afford them the opportunity to cultivate their imagination and grow into the leaders of tomorrow.

    Being a Black artist here is a lonely existence. I’ve adopted the model of “compassionate capitalism” in my career to alleviate some of the financial pressure on parents by providing free basic art training to kids and young adults in my community. Our goal is to engage these young artists with hands-on education,  building pathways that not only activate their creative powers, but teach ownership. In order to truly fulfill the vision of the Renaissance Fire for The Arts, we need your help.

Please consider donating to the Renaissance Fire for The Arts Project.

Every donation will help bring this dream closer to a reality by providing paint classes, art supplies, branding and marketing to expand our reach, space rentals, the hiring of additional talent, and more.

All donations are tax deductible. Each donor will receive a T-shirt, Facial mask or small art print 4x6.

Thanks in advance for your contribution to this important cause that means so much to me and to our budding young artists!