My creative practice is centered around praxis, which I define as theory + action.
If knowledge is power, then knowledge should be accessible. I strive to make cultural and technical knowledge accessible to audiences at shows and to the students I work with. This is why teaching is part of my creative practice. Teaching is a long-form installation that requires the artist/teacher to connect with and sustain their connection to their community.
My power comes from connecting to my community. My art is a practice of nurturing that connection. I exist in many intersections as a queer Black woman. The layers of media and meaning in my work reflect the layers of my identity. Inspired by Frida Kahlo, I express my own reality.
Liz Rhaney (she/they) is an installation and experiential artist. Their work includes education, filmmaking, writing, music, and DJing under the name BLK Plutoh. Liz is originally from Savannah, Georgia. She comes from a family of artists and musicians with Gullah and Geechee ancestry. They earned their BFA in Graphic Design from Armstrong State University (now Armstrong Campus of Georgia Southern University) and their MFA in Studio Art from Maine College of Art. Themes in her work include the intersection of science and art and connecting with cultural memory. They currently teach STEAM classes at Hyde School in Bath, Maine.