Click the boxes above to learn the ways that AAFR embodies each of these pillars.

Climate Justice/Social Justice Artist-In-Residence

AAFR will collaborate with food fighter and vegan hip-hop artist Ietef Vita aka “DJ Cavem” to expand the research and development goals of AAFR through the expansion of his music label Plant Based Records including curriculum design, community engagement, performance, and event production.

MORE on DJ Cavem at - https://www.chefietef.com/

Social & Creative Economies Fellow

As the Social & Creative Economies Fellow, creative director, stylist, Christian Walker designs platforms for mental health advocacy and storytelling utilizing the energy of the fashion industry, sneaker-culture, and social entrepreneurship skills-building via his STUDIOS brand.
FOLLOW Christian at https://www.instagram.com/chr1st1vn/

Omi Black Writer’s Residency // Poet-In-Residence //

The "Omi" Black Writers Residency is 9-month capsule program curated by Artist As First Responder that invites Black writers who are working primarily as Poets to both write and extend their practice to include visual work. The writers are touted as Poet-In-Residence. Part of the unique offering of this Residency is to provide support and mentorship to writers interested in experimenting with new forms of expression outside of their primary creative practice, and to inspire a deeper inquiry into the work by inviting new connections to the subject matter, the medium, and what is offered to the community. The Omi Poets-In-Residence have access to the writer’s studio for 1-3-months and are held with care by a small group of master-artists and curators who offer instruction in visual arts including digital printing, printmaking, photography, ceramic arts, and wood works.

Black [Space] Residency

Artist As First Responder is a Sponsoring Partner at Black [Space] Residency- a physical container for imagination, inquiry, activity & rest for BLACK CREATIVES working across a myriad of disciplines. Operating at the intersection of abundance, well-being, safety, and self-determination, our work is rooted in the love of Black culture as a means of creating and offering space without any expectation of performative or production output from Black artists.

Co-Founded in 2020 by Erica Deeman and Ashara Ekundayo