![[Original size] Our Logo.png](https://static.wixstatic.com/media/69b6d8_6bef7e0d91834d438abba2fa74dc81e8~mv2.png/v1/crop/x_0,y_0,w_1620,h_1405/fill/w_158,h_137,al_c,q_85,usm_0.66_1.00_0.01,enc_auto/%5BOriginal%20size%5D%20Our%20Logo.png)
Jency Sekaran:
Jency is an Indian American artist from Snellville, Georgia who loves New York City for the wide variety in art, food and culture. She currently lives in NYC and works as a Research Scientist for the New York City Department of Health as an epidemiologist. Speaking of culture, Jency creates #fortheculture by using her art to create a conversation about colorism and other stigmas within South Asian cultures. "As a first generation Indian-American, my work explores how I find balance amongst these two identities. There is a struggle to adhere the cultural standards of my Indian heritage while wanting to adopt Western ideals as well. Growing up, Indian culture felt strict compared the rebelliousness of Western culture. It was the force of these two ideals that led me study both art and science. " With a passion for fighting for racial equity, Jency works to "to be able to spread awareness about colorism and also show other South Asians that we can be what we want to be and don't need to fall into societal pressures."
@art_by_jency_15il
Dr. Kenya “Sparkles” Crawford:
Sparkles is a Brooklyn based artist and doctor who is showcasing at Yema Calif in Soho, NY. "I believe ALL women are divine. It is my intention to create beautiful art that reflect women as their Highest Selves.My art combines Realism, Street Art, Spirituality, and Women Empowerment.“You ARE a Beautiful Being!”, is my 7 piece debut collection.My medium is Dye Sublimation onto Aluminum Metal." Inspired by her hometown, her highest self, and great Uncle and artist Cleo Crawford, Sparkles believes that "Art is a great form of communication…. and The BEST Art will outlive it’s Artist.Look at the Egyptians." A great addition to our first ever heART Week, Sparkles expresses enthusiasm for being a New Yorker, "I love that my hometown is The Greatest City on this PLANET!We give birth to Legends. While also representing the VERY BEST the world has to offer…. in EVERY SINGLE CATEGORY!I am from NYC. The City of Dreams. The City of Greatness. I LOVE that New York City is NEW YORK CITY!"
Kervin Andre:
Birthed amidst the beauty and splendor of the First Black Republic in the Americas, Kervin Andre was born and raised in Port-au-Prince, Haiti. Kervin is the third-born to his parents. Kervin’s formative years spent in Haiti would become a reoccurring theme in many of his art pieces. Although born gifted, his skills remained dormant except for the occasional canvas for family members and friends. Kervin first started gaining a following under the name AkomicsArt on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook after he started posting his art online. Followers of Kervin on his social media pages can see the growth from his first drawing [The Prayer], of a man on his knees praying, to his newest work—again, testaments of the dedication and time put into every one of his projects and a commitment to growth and learning in his craft.
Self-taught, Kervin has dedicated much of his art to destroying the negative images about Haiti filtered to the general mass via television, magazines, and newspaper articles. Instead of seeing what others used to often refer to as a third-world country, Kervin continues to see “La Perle des Antilles” (The Pearl of the Antilles)--a country so beautiful and filled with life that not even a horrific natural disaster could temper the spirit of the people. Short of a week after the Earthquake of 2010, the people took to the streets singing about life, and joy, and beauty, and thanking God. This is the Haiti Kervin is sharing through his art, and it is this Haiti he wants the world to become intimate with.