Kara Mshinda

Kara Mshinda (she, her, hers) is an interdisciplinary artist with roots in photography and anthropology. Born and raised in Columbus, Ohio, Mshinda graduated from The University of Akron with a degree in Interdisciplinary Anthropology and Classical Studies. She later relocated to Philadelphia to continue her academic work in the Anthropology of Visual Communication doctoral program at Temple University. Her graduate research focused on vernacular literacy practices and the socialization of graffiti artists in Philadelphia. Exhibiting since 2013, Mshinda’s work has been shown at the Leonard Pearlstein Gallery, Rush Arts Philly, Delaware Contemporary, Mana Contemporary in Chicago, Commonweal, Philadelphia Sketch Club, and Schau Fenster in Berlin. In addition to creating artwork, Mshinda teaches an art history course on race, identity, and American art at Tyler School of Art and Architecture and is Fellowship Director at Da Vinci Art Alliance. She is a member of Tiger Strikes Asteroid, an artist-run gallery in Philadelphia, and she serves on the Arts Committee at William Way LGBT Community Center.

The Guardian is the guardian of the people on the earthly and spiritual planes. Protector of the vulnerable facing challenges in the community and out in the world. The loving and ever vigilant eyes watch over us at all times keeping us from harm. The Guardian guides our path as we navigate the peaks and valleys of the individual and collective journey.