The Story Behind the Mural

ABOUT SHAMIRA

My name is Shamira, and I Wear the Sun
I am a farmer and a visual artist.
The core materials that I work with are heavily influenced by the cultivation process and include:
Earth, which leaves traces of its hue and tells the story of a place in various ways in the environment.
Pigment, from local and diasporic plants, speaking to our localness and migrations
Fiber, from the plant stalk.
And Plants themselves.

I grow okra, and steward its botanical and spiritual gifts.
The pods are provided to local community members for nourishment.
The bast fiber is extracted and hand spun into thread for weaving textiles on the loom.
The flowers are harvested for dye, tea, and pigment.
The seeds are saved for future generations of people and plant cultivation.
After the harvest is complete paintings and botanical illustrations are made that archive the sights and sensations of the entire process.

COHATCH POLK

What stories can the soil tell us about a place? About the people who have lived and worked nearby?

Near the Polk Stable, wild botanicals grow. In particular, the Chicory Flower.

Native to Eurasia, Cichorium intybus often grows by the roadside. Near the Polk Stable, it grows in a patch of earth neighboring the Monon Trail, Provider, and 16th and Lewis.

It is known as a highly nutritious coffee alternative and has also been used as a livestock feed that naturally increases milk production. How interesting it is that this plant can give us clues about the story of Polk Stable. Stroll around your neighborhood, favorite park, or green space and notice what's growing wild nearby. What stories might those plants contain about the places and spaces we occupy?

During the research process for the Polk Stable Mural, I took a nature walk around the neighborhood where I came across the Chirpory flower. I gathered a few specimens and took them back to the studio, where I created a pigment from the petals, leaves, and stems. This pigment will live at the Polklore Museum located at CoHatch Polk Stable.

Learn more about Shamira at www.instagram.com/shamirawilson