Antoinette Cauley

As Beyoncé sings “Who Run the World” in the background, Phoenix based artist Antoinette Cauley takes her place in front of the camera with confidence, grace and beauty. As I sit with her team inside of Dione’s Wall of Flowers in central Phoenix, Cauley poses for promotional photos for her upcoming art show “Long Live the Rose that Grew from Concrete”. She shares her spotlight with her two mentees, artist Shoreigh Williams and lyricist Amir Billings, who are rising stars in her art program for teens called the J.A.A.R Initiative.

There’s excitement and high energy within the team as they anxiously wait for the big night!  Cauley was generous enough to invite me to the photo shoot where I was able to witness her team coming together to create photos and video content to promote an art show that honors the life and work of rapper/poet/activist Tupac Shakur…