Currently on exhibit at the Black History Museum and Cultural Center of Virginia through August 2025.

2 Options Available:

2 Options Available!

—Framed (brown) 11 × 12 print with mat (white)

—Various canvas sizes on wooden frames

This art piece is a tribute to Lena Horne, whose life and work transcended the boundaries of art and activism. By reimagining her as an interstellar pilot, I honor her legacy as a trailblazer who navigated the complexities of race, gender, and identity with unwavering grace and determination. Her journey was not just her own; it was a testament to the resilience and ingenuity of Black women who have historically been the backbone of cultural and social movements. Her work in entertainment and civil rights was a form of labor that demanded visibility, dignity, and justice in spaces that often sought to erase her.

The Series

Sowing the Sky: A Traveling Apothecary of Memory

This quartet of embroidered portraits—Lena Horne, Eartha Kitt, Nina Simone, and Billie Holiday—projects the Elders forward in time to honor and maintain a continuity of our collective memory by bringing them into the future we seek to co-create. Each figure carries seeds, dried herbs, and remedies in their cosmic travels, stitching their legacies into the soil of our collective future.

The original embroidered piece has been sold and is in a private collection, but I am releasing limited canvas copies available only through to the Rising Rooted.

Original Embroidery Completed: 2024

Materials of Original Artwork: Canvas, Embroidery Thread, and Okra Dust

*Framed Print Quality: Our framed prints are assembled, packaged, and shipped by our expert framing staff and delivered "ready to hang" with pre-attached hanging wire, mounting hooks, and nails.

Image: 11.13" x 12.00"

Mat Border: 2.00"

Frame Width: 2.50"

Overall: 19.88" x 20.75"

*Canvas Art Quality: Premium canvases and then stretched on a wooden frame of 1.5" x 1.5" stretcher bars (gallery wrap) or 5/8" x 5/8" stretcher bars (museum wrap). Your canvas print will be delivered to you "ready to hang" with pre-attached hanging wire, mounting hooks, and nails.