

Bridging Gaps From the Past to the Present and to the Future



About The Event
Utilizing ProBono ASL, Open Captions & Auto-Captioning
Art by Amaranthia Sepia
"I Know Who I Am!" is a virtual Zoom event occuring on October 5th, @6:30 - 8:30 PM EST showcasing a collection of women of color and femme-expressing folks of color finding solace and healing in art. Our five chosen artists, through narrative videos totaling to a 20 minute documentary, will discuss their lived experience with subjects around race, gender, disability, mental health, immigration and more, and how art serves as a healing tool for them. Artworks and videos will be showcased after the event on virtual interactive gallery platform, Kuntsmatrix.com and our YouTube Channel, Art & Mind Series. Alt text & image descriptions included.
In addition, co-founder Claire Jones will have a documentary showcase about her journey through cancer, titled, "A 50% Chance of Paralysis: Get Ahead of Life Before Life Gets Ahead of You!"
The event will focus on disability, health disparities amongst BIWOC & femmes of color, and the ongoing impact of COVID-19 on disabled, immunocompromised and chronically ill folks of color.
We are disabled and immunocompromised ourselves. As a result, we are still masking, and "Still COVIDing."
Our show will also include talks from Black activists - immunocompromised COVID Conscious Therapist Speaker Amanda McGuire, MC and Therapist Journee LaFond, Disability Speaker Jacquese Armstrong and a feature showcasing our art direction team.
Speakers, artists & team members will participate in a Q & A.


We're using this event to raise funds for the Sistas Uprising Fund, where 100% of proceeds will become grants for women of color & femme-expressing creatives of color.
Our goal is to raise $1000 and distribute $200 to five artists!
Sponsored by Brain Arts Org, all five artists who were selected from our open call are compensated a total of $200 USD each.

Keep Scrolling To View Documentary Info, Speakers, Our Team & Accessibility Info
The Five Art & Mind Documentary Artists

Documentary: "Get Ahead of Life Before Life Get's Ahead of You"

SISTA CREATIVES RISING PRESENTS Art & Mind An “I Know Who I Am” Virtual Fundraiser & Film Event Documentary About Cancer A 50% CHANCE OF PARALYSIS: Get Ahead of Life Before Life Gets Ahead of You! Art by Amaranthia Sepia Additional coloring by Linlin Yu. A nude voluptuous brown woman holding a red cane with a white handle in front of her, stands at the edge of a clear pond shaped like Earth.

Claire, an older Black woman with a shaved head, receiving assistance from two physical therapists, their heads censored with sunflowers drawn by Amaranthia. One is on her left and one is on her right helping her walk the first time after spinal surgery. Claire is using a walker, and is wearing a large brace that covers her neck and torso. Claire is also wearing a hospital gown. Everyone is wearing a mask.

Claire is wearing a white kimono style cardigan with an orange, brown and red flower pattern. She is wearing a white halter jumpsuit under it. SHe is standing between two medium sized pine trees with the sun shining down on her. Both of Claire's arms are raised. In her left hand is her white flower patterned cane and a pink tiny Japanese coin bag.

SISTA CREATIVES RISING PRESENTS Art & Mind An “I Know Who I Am” Virtual Fundraiser & Film Event Documentary About Cancer A 50% CHANCE OF PARALYSIS: Get Ahead of Life Before Life Gets Ahead of You! Art by Amaranthia Sepia Additional coloring by Linlin Yu. A nude voluptuous brown woman holding a red cane with a white handle in front of her, stands at the edge of a clear pond shaped like Earth.
In addition, a 25-30-minute documentary will showcase co-founder Claire's cancer journey.
Sponsored by Dancing Queerly Boston, Claire faces her trauma by navigating physical and occupational therapy to be one of the 1% that can walk again after high-risk surgery. This showcase reflects how stereotypes, misogynoir, and expectations placed on Black women of the diaspora can manifest as health crises. It will highlight the fear several Black women have of American healthcare.
FEATURING A PLETHORA OF ART:
- ORIGINAL MUSIC COMPOSED BY AUSTRALIAN DISABILITY ACTIVIST MEL CHILIANIS
- CLAIRE'S ORIGINAL SPOKEN WORD POEMS PAIRED WITH PERFORMANCE ART
- VISUAL NARRATIVES AND INTERVIEWS BETWEEN CLAIRE & HER DAUGHTER, CO-CREATOR AMARANTHIA SEPIA

Initiative Statement
Intergenerational dysfunctions linked to race, sexuality, and gender can subconsciously impact the lives of women of color and *femme-expressing folks of color, complicating our relationship with ourselves. The basis of several of these issues can be linked back to the chaos and destruction caused by colonialism. Confronting these issues through creative and artistic endeavors can catalyze us to embrace ourselves as whole, healthy beings.
We're developing a disability-accessible virtual gallery and virtual reception where creative women of color and femme-expressing folks of color can discuss their experiences with various social issues. These stories show how art can be used to empower yourself and for emotional & spiritual healing. We hope our efforts to bring folks together to tell these triumphant, empowering stories will spark healing discussions across cultures and communities, resulting in solidarity.

*Femme is a term used in LGBTQ+ circles that describes one's gender expression. It further explains how a person exists in society, such as a non-binary femme or trans-femme. 'Woman' describes gender identity, where 'femme' is a gender expression.

Our 2023 Speakers

(They/Them)
Advocating for social justice and equity for marginalized peoples with a focus on LGBTQ & QTBIPOC youth issues. Teens, elders, young children and adults have the ability to address trauma, life transitions, sexuality/gender issues, relationships and more. Journee wants you to feel empowered and validated.
MSW

(She/Her)
A graduate of Univiersity of Toledo with a B.A. in Journalism, Jacquese chooses to focus on self-care & emotional wellness workshops, using the arts as raw materials. She received the 2019 Naomi Long Madgett Poetry Award & 2015 Ambassador Award from New Jersey's Governor's Council on Mental Health Stigma.
Poet

Meet The "I Know Who I Am!" Team!
Select images to learn about each member














Accessibility
We will develop a disability-accessible gallery through Kuntsmatrix.com, a virtual gallery platform. We are utilizing guidance from Amaranthia Sepia's disability-focused residency Socially Distant Art. Amaranthia joined the cohort in August 2022. ProBono ASL will be utilized for our live event.
Our team of change-makers, including activists from Indonesia, Australia, RI, CA, MA, and NH will accomplish tasks such as content warnings, open captioning, auto captioning, tech assistance during the Zoom reception, free mental health guidance/resources and more. All speakers will Self-ID before presenting. This is also included in our documentaries. Artist videos contain artwork descriptions as well.
All featured videos will be captioned, and all gallery works will be accompanied with image descriptions and video descriptions.

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Contact
General Inquiry
Art & Mind Inquiries
Virtual Workshop/Presentation Inquiries
Virtual Speaking Engagements
Virtual Media Interview