Earthseed Black Arts Alliance

Earthseed Black Arts Alliance New Mexico, was founded in 2020 by Nikesha Breeze, the late Tigre Mashall-Lively, and Raashan Ahmad. Drawing inspiration from Octavia Butler's visionary science fiction, Earthseed Black Arts Alliance is a Black-led initiative committed to uplifting and amplifying Black voices in Northern New Mexico through the power of art. As a community-centered organization, we work actively alongside local Indigenous, POC and LGBTQIA+ artists, and the city’s artist community more generally. We believe artists are both at the forefront of change and are critical to the creation and preservation of culture. Our core team consists of established interdisciplinary Black artists, educators and community organizers. Many identify as queer or non-binary. All of us are dedicated to the liberation, amplification and representation of African American voices in our communities and society as a whole. As a locally run grassroots organization, we rely on grant funding, individual donations and volunteer support to operate our programs and initiatives.

By partnering with Indigenous artists, global arts organizations, and the broader artistic community, Earthseed Black Arts Alliance New Mexico acts as a catalyst for a diverse and inclusive future in the arts. As artists and activists we are addressing the urgent need for sustainable, post-capitalist community spaces, events, collaborations and education that champions healing, restoration, and transformation for underserved artists, activists, and cultural workers.

Our mission is to create a sustainable and post-capitalist living space that serves as a model for equitable community ownership and fosters healing and restorative practices for underserved artists, activists, cultural workers and their allies This includes QTBIPOC+, white working class, and all peoples of the global majority. The space will serve to uphold post-capitalist shared values, including practices that are fundamentally, post-transactional, anti-patriarchal, post-hierarchical, anti-colonialist, and anti-racist. Through our project we aim to break down inter-generational wealth and class inequalities while promoting a sense of collective care for the land and shared space. ​​This project will contribute space for revolutionary, transformative change that moves beyond racial capitalism by fostering local economies based on solidarity and mutual aid.

Earthseed's primary mission is to increase the visibility of Black artists and culture in the arts scene of Santa Fe and Northern New Mexico, where Black people are a small minority. The alliance addresses the urgent need for sustainable, post-capitalist creative spaces that champion healing, restoration, and transformation for underserved artists and activists. 

Earthseed runs a variety of programs and events that serve its mission: