“The only way to deal with an unfree world is to become so absolutely free that your very existence is an act of rebellion.”
— Albert Camus
Kelis the Afronaut
Kelis the Afronaut is a Black warrior conceptualized by our family collective Juniper Creative Arts. Kelis travels through space and time fighting for justice for all Black and Brown folks. Kelis is the inaugural character of our Afro-Pollinator series. The Afro-Pollinators are ethereal beings who embody joy, love, resilience, and a revolutionary spirit. Her armor keeps her protected against hundreds of years of oppression and the virus of racism. In spite of the injustices and anti-Black sentiment, Kelis remains tender, light, and free because Black joy is her rebellion. Kelis, and the other Afro-Pollinators, are here to remind us that we are interconnected and that we must live and love in mutuality with the natural and spirit worlds. In doing so we help shape a future world where BIPOC folks are free and liberated. She holds a poppy flower to honor the lives of those who fought and died in the many revolutions against colonialism, slavery, racism, and oppression.
Kelis’s wings are made up of 300 individual pieces of artwork created by students at Champlain Elementary School and King Street Center youth.
Seven Days, Margaret Grayson | Published Sept. 25, 2020
New Anti-Racist Mural Rises at Champlain Elementary. A new mural at Champlain Elementary School in Burlington was completed this week by artists Will Kasso Condry and Jennifer Herrera Condry, with the help of their daughter, Alexa, and dozens of local children.
The colorful, Afrofuturist mural was originally intended for another South End wall, but was rejected by the business owner. Soon after, the mural's commissioners, tenants of the Soda Plant on Pine Street, started a crowdfunding campaign and issued a citywide “Call for a Wall.”
2020 • Champlain Elementary School • Burlington, VT
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2020 • Kelis: Unapologetically Black and Free • Vermont Utopias exhibition
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NECN, Jack Thurston | Published Sept. 21, 2020
Vt. School Partners With Black-Owned Art Studio to Create Anti-Racism Mural. A community art project wrapping up this week in Burlington, Vermont, aims to send an anti-racist message using a prominent wall of an elementary school as the canvas.
Mural Celebration at Champlain Elementary