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Meijer partners with Midwest artists on Black History Month collection

Meijer

Five percent of sales from the collection will be donated to Urban Leagues out of West Michigan and Indianapolis.

Three Black, midwestern artists have partnered with Meijer to bring their vision to life this February. The special collection, which includes a mix of paintings and digital art, is a celebration of Black History Month. A portion of its sales will be donated to Urban Leagues in the Midwest.

Artists Melina Brann (Lansing), Dana Powell-Smith (Indianapolis) and Shaunt'e Lewis (Indianapolis) were selected by Meijer after the retailer put a call out in 2021 for culturally-inspired art. Meijer merchants selected the winning artists and pieces among hundreds of submissions.

Products include pillows, stationary, gift bags, canvas tote bags, key rings, kitchen towels and throw blankets. Meijer will donate five percent of sales from the collection to Urban League affiliates in the artists’ home state – The Urban League of West Michigan and the Indianapolis Urban League.

Brann, a Lansing-based social worker and artist, purposefully uses pastel colors in her designs, a color palette not typically associated with Black coloring, to depict a “pyramid of faces.” In a statement Brann said this represents the building blocks of community.

"For this piece, I wanted to show how Black women and Black people in our community lift each other up," Brann said. "I hope my art sends the message that we're all in this together – no matter what we look like, no matter who we are – we can lift each other up and make anything happen."

Products will be available through February 26.

This collection marks the first of five local artist partnerships Meijer will unveil this year. Others will be tied to locally-inspired art, Women’s History Month, Pride Month and Hispanic Heritage month.

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