Erin LeAnn Mitchell is a mixed-media artist from Birmingham, Alabama. Her work centers Black futures and often portrays Black femmes, while highlighting aesthetic rituals and engaging concepts of Afrofuturism. Mitchell envisions expansive spatial and temporal worlds through vibrant colors, emphasizing the freedom to be that must be afforded to all Black people. Her pieces often gesture towards the rich interior worlds of Black life. She draws on her experiences growing up in a Southern matriarchal family to highlight the strategies Black women enact to thrive, while also navigating violently oppressive systems. She cites her grandmother’s quilting as a major influence in her own practice, much of which can be seen in her use of fabric appliqué and collage techniques.

Mitchell’s attention to intricate details demonstrates a profound investment in care with each piece. She received her BFA from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and her MFA in Art Education from Columbia College, Chicago. She has had solo exhibitions at AMFM gallery in Chicago, IL and the Birmingham Public Library in Alabama and has participated in several group exhibitions at Kravets Wehby Gallery in New York, NY, FLXST Contemporary in Chicago, IL and Ground Floor Contemporary in Birmingham, AL. Mitchell has also received several public art commissions, including her most recent mural “Calafia was Here” at the San Luis Obispo Art Museum (2022) and her work is part of the permanent collection of the Birmingham Museum of Fine Art.