Join us for an artist talk by DS Kinsel, followed by a career Q&A session co-hosted with the Career Center. This event is organized by GAC with the generous support of the Department of Illustration and RISD Careers.

Light eats served.

DS Kinsel is an award-winning creative entrepreneur and cultural agitator who expresses his creativity through various mediums, including painting, printmaking, collage, installation, curating, performance, and public art. His work focuses on themes such as space keeping, urban tradition, hip-hop, informalism, and cultural re-appropriation. D.S. has received several accolades, including being a former AmeriCorps Public Ally member and an Awardee of the Pittsburgh Courier Fab 40, Pittsburgh Magazine PUMP 40 Under 40, Pgh Tech Council Creative of The Year, the Pittsburgh Post Gazette's "Top Ten People To Meet in 2016," and the Incline's "Who's Next" for 2018.

DS is also the co-founder of BOOM Concepts, a creative hub dedicated to advancing black and brown artists representing marginalized communities. Since its establishment in 2014, BOOM Concepts, based in Pittsburgh, has curated 50 on-site exhibitions, paid over $150k in artist fees, and produced 200+ events across the country. It serves as a space for field building, knowledge sharing, mentorship, and storytelling, continually challenging and uplifting the creative community. In 2021, BOOM Concepts was selected as one of the partners to represent The Greater Pittsburgh Region on the Google Arts & Culture platform and recognized as one of Pittsburgh's Cultural Treasures through The Heinz Endowments and The Ford Foundation.

DS Kinsel's time at RISD included studio visits at the Illustration department where he met several of the Illustration MFA students and discussed their work with them. This was then followed by an artist talk and Career Q&A co-hosted with the RISD Career Center, which was attended by students, faculty and members of the Providence community. See some images from the day below.