made with radical love, hope, & praxis
heather c. lou, m.ed. (she/her/hers) is an angry gemini earth dragon, multiracial, asian, queer, cisgender, disabled, depressed, and anxious womxn of color artist based in st. paul, minnesota.
her mixed media pieces include watercolor, acrylic, gold paint pen, oil pastel, radical love, & hope. each piece comments on the intersections of her racial, gender, ability, & sexual identities, as they continue to shift and develop in complexity each day. her art is a form of healing, transformation, and liberation, rooted in womxnism and gender equity through a racialized borderland lens. heather works in education as an administrator.
in her spare time, heather loves birdwatching, playing with olive bear (her cat), snuggling sprout and loon (her pups), hiking for self-care, playing her ukulele, and spending time with her loving partner.
hcl also helps co-organize support local hustle, a black, indigenous, people of color makers collective in the twin cities. for more information about this group, go to instagram and follow @supportlocalhustle!
updates & information
what hclou ART has been up to...
i finished 2018 knowing that i poured so much of my heart and soul into art and education. i completed an art residency with free arts minnesota/big brothers big sisters twin cities where i was able to teach youth art and healing techniques at a residential facility with girls who navigated substance use, recovery, and other trauma. i performed a piece at the funny asian womxn kollective (fawk) open mic show, addressing being a creative witch and dismantling white supremacy. i also created a beautiful (and very large) watercolor commission for the macalester dean of students office, which helped me practice curating art that resonates with my personal and professional values. i am
so grateful for these opportunities and ways that my community has supported my work.
this year (2019) has been about critical self and community care. i took a majority of the spring off to focus on my family and art, and was able to find ways to get re-energized about art, activism, and skills development for people interested in creativity.
i have traveled to san jose state university to facilitate a block printing workshop, completed an art residency with reclaim (a queer mental health organization), completed a watercolor commission for the minnesota department of human services, traveled to kalamazoo college to speak about zine making, participated in twin cities zine fest, completed another residency with big brothers big sisters twin cities, and helped co-organize support local hustle, a black, indigenous, people of color makers collective and markets.
2020 has been a whirlwind and COVID-19 has changed the art community drastically. arts events have been cancelled, postponed, or streamed online. as a visual artist who thrives on community building, that is quite challenging! i've created block prints addressing covid, digital art about resilience, distributed coloring books, and am in the process of illustrating a book. im working with oregon state university to co-facilitate an emergent strategy discussion group via zoom, which has been energizing and a great professional development.
i'm excited to continue this momentum and create more this year and work with different organizations/businesses/universities/colleges about art, healing, resistance, and trauma informed-community care.
upcoming events
visit hclou art near you!
workshops and facilitations
hcl is available for workshops and facilitations for organizations, colleges, universities, groups, etc.
all workshops are a minimum of 2 hours and focus on identity, inclusion, and intergenerational healing techniques. custom workshops are also available as they pertain to equity, assessment, creating healthy workplaces, communication styles, leadership, and more.
your organization can also request custom art for events or giveaways, or as a way to decorate the workplace!
email for more information.
block print and activism workshop
participants will learn how to carve a block and create their own 5.5x7.5" activist prints.
zine making workshop
participants will learn about the hxstory of zines and create their own pieces to share in community.
watercolor affirmation postcard workshop
participants will develop their own watercolor affirmation postcards and dialogue about healing in community.