As we continue celebrating our 50th anniversary year, we are happy to announce a first-time initiative: throughout the year, we’ll be releasing four locally-commissioned art pieces, each representing our anniversary theme, “Our Neighbors, Our Communities.” Today, we’re excited to share the first finished piece!
Click the image to enlarge and see full detail.
Specifically, this piece—created by Minneapolis-based comic artist, illustrator, and designer Kameron White—illustrates the concept of community happening within a building between neighbors.
In describing his initial idea for this concept, Kameron wrote:
I am inspired by this project, in part due to being an individual who lives in affordable housing and is part of this community as well. I see the diversity of residents here, and I see how even from different backgrounds, they come together to help one another, donate resources to each other, and more. With this project, I want to highlight that. I want to show the community that comes together in affordable housing buildings like this, and how although at first we are strangers, neighbors and the community come together to help one another and do little things around that building to brighten other residents’ days.
In this illustration, you’ll see a glimpse into the lives of neighbors of different ages, races, abilities, and more. They’re interacting, helping, playing, and simply enjoying each other’s company. Though the building itself is dignified and important, much like in CommonBond buildings, it’s the residents and their lives, interests, relationships, and goals that create a community, not just the building itself. The bright colors represent the vibrancy of the housing community. In the distance, you’ll see parts of the Minneapolis and Saint Paul skylines.
This is the first time we’ve ever worked with an artist to create something like this, and we are so excited to share this piece with you. We will be sharing the remaining three pieces over the course of our 50th anniversary year. Keep an eye out for this artwork in our housing communities, our Central Office, in the mail, and more as we continue celebrating 50 years of stable homes, strong futures, and vibrant communities!
About the artist:
Kameron White is a comic artist, illustrator, and designer who works with traditional and digital mediums, including ink, pencil, watercolor, and digital formats. Within his work, he aims and works towards displaying a diverse group. This includes People of Color, LGBTQ+ characters, characters of different body sizes, characters with disabilities, and characters of various backgrounds. He also places these characters in sceneries that are not common in history, especially Black and Brown bodies in mythological and religious settings.
Growing up, he didn’t see many characters like himself in terms of race, gender, sexuality, experience, or body type. In Kameron’s body of work, he wants to include as much diversity as he can. He also aims to document his own personal stories, by illustrating comics going through his personal journeys as a Trans man of color. With his stories, he hopes to inspire and help other people who might relate and know that there is someone who has been there too.
