Artist Journey

As a Black, queer, and immigrant artist, I’ve always sought to explore my identity, honor my heritage, and connect with the stories of my ancestors, stories that live in me, even when history has left no records behind. Approximately eight years ago, I took a genealogy test that revealed fragments of my ancestry: roots spanning Sub-Saharan Africa, the Caribbean, Europe, and Indigenous America. That discovery sparked something profound within me, a desire to weave these fragmented threads into a tapestry of belonging and self-discovery. This journey has also been shaped by my experiences navigating mental illness, including ADHD, anxiety, OCD, depression, PTSD and my autism diagnosis (misdiagnosed as bipolar disorder), which have profoundly influenced the way I view resilience, connection, and creativity.

THIS IS ME: Threads of Ancestral Light is the result of that journey. This collection is my way of honoring the stories I’ll never fully know while celebrating the richness of the cultures and histories that shape who I am. Through vibrant textures, golden light, and symbolic patterns, I explore migration, resilience, and the spiritual ties that connect us to one another across time and space.

For me, this work is more than art, it’s an offering. It’s a reflection of my journey to reclaim what was lost, to find beauty in what remains, and to create something new that can inspire others to embrace their own stories.

Artist Bio

Eris Lorienne is an multidisciplinary artist, poet, and storyteller whose work weaves together themes of identity, ancestry, and spiritual connection. Born in Guadeloupe and raised on the lush island of Dominica before immigrating to York, Nebraska, in 1997, Eris channels their rich heritage as a Black queer woman into every artwork and verse. With roots in West African, Caribbean, and Indigenous traditions, they merge these influences into vibrant, ethereal creations that explore the intersection of migration, resilience, and self-discovery.

Eris’s art collection, “THIS IS ME: Threads of Ancestral Light,” is a stunning testament to their journey to honor their ancestors and envision new paths of belonging. Eris’ poetry reflects the same depth and whimsy, inviting connection with the timeless dance between earth and cosmos. A natural innovator with an Aquarius Sun and Sagittarius Moon, Eris crafts works that transcend boundaries, revolutionizing how we see ourselves and our interconnected stories tying in patterns and shapes that mirror and expand the theories surrounding Metatron's Cube, a sacred geometric figure in mystical traditions, the works of Nikola Tesla and mathematical artistic expressions based on the Fibonacci sequence.

Eris has pursued art professionally in Nebraska for over 18 years and their work has been featured and displayed at Nebraska Furniture Mart, the Bemis Center, College of Saint Mary, and the BFF Gallery. Eris is a published author, who wrote and illustrated a book "Pinapel and Friends. Who Are they?", which can be found locally at the Bookworm, City Limits, and Made in Omaha. Eris' has been featured by the Omaha World Herald and Omaha Woman for their advocacy work and was honored as part of a display at the Kiewit Luminarium.