Not just of land and water - but of memory, climate change, and how much we as humans have cared for (or destroyed) each place.

 

 

I'm Rokita - an abstract map maker and artist. I've developed my unique painting style and visual language over the past 10 years, and I'm ready for my next big project. This time, it's going to be on Kickstarter!

 

As a child, I fell in love with nature. It has informed my work as an artist, where I focus much of my time on projects that bring abstract map-making, ecology, and indigenous land knowledge to the forefront.

 

 

 

I think as (good) humans, it’s our duty to document the world we still have, build a loving relationship with nature, and save what’s left. The best way I know how to engage with this work is through art. So here we are.

 

“Maps of the Earth We Still Have” is going to be a multimedia art project that brings together a collection of abstract map paintings, songs, and poems that capture the fragile beauty and feeling of places we risk losing, while bringing awareness to their need for care.

 

Each "map" in the project will represent one of the top 10 most endangered ecosystems such as coral reefs, kelp forests, springs, marshes, and estuaries. These are going to be visualized as living emotional impressions through a mixed media collection of paintings that I've created, accompanied by songs by Baumarius (a synesthete and composer who also happens to be my little brother), and poems by Scott Thornton (one of my art-collectors-turned-creative-collaborator).   

 

 

For this project, I'm going to have tiers that include exclusive limited-edition art prints along with the songs and poems that accompany each painting.

 

Certain tiers will also come with exclusive tote bags, a printed “Maps of the Earth We Still Have” collector’s guide - featuring my own reflections on each piece and all 10 of Scott Thornton’s poems. There will also be some other exciting add-on options, like the full album that my brother will create. 

 

I'll also have stretch goals that will allow me to add other ecosystem maps to the collection, fund an interactive online map experience that pairs the art with the places, and a limited run of vinyl records featuring all of the art / songs / and poems in the project.

 

 

 

$3k of the funding will go to my brother for composing an entire album of 10 songs for this collection.

 

I'd like to be able to pay Scott Thornton for creating the poems for each painting, at least $1,000 in total for all 10.

 

If we go above and beyond our goal, 20% of each pledge beyond the goal that include the music and poems will go to both Scott and my brother (10% each).

 

If we're able to go above and beyond $7k, I'll be able to pay myself for the time it takes to do all the research, paint the paintings, and get out limited edition prints of this collection, which will include hours of hand-embellishing depending on how many pledges we receive for limited edition prints. It will also allow me to expand the project.

 

*Although Kickstarter does not allow campaigns to run as fundraisers for non-profits or charities, 10% of my profits always go to the Women's Earth Alliance.

If this sounds like an exciting project (we think it is!), we'd love to invite you to subscribe to our Kickstarter updates email list below! Everyone on this list will have the chance to get access to early-bird pricing for the collection when the campaign goes live. We will also send research notes and updates as the art / music / poetry is made over the coming weeks.