Celebrate Free Geek's 23rd birthday with a limited edition shirt!

Free Geek x Nia Musiba Black History Month T-Shirt

$40.00

Free Geek collaboration with PDX artist Nia Musiba to fundraise for Portland locals in need of computers via sold computers

This year Free Geek is working with local artists to reflect on the historical and present influence of the digital divide. We hope to be able to promote the work of artists in our local community while getting our message across through a diverse range of voices. Each artist will make a design that reflects the impact of the digital divide. These designs will be made into shirts to be purchased by the community in a two week window. In support of Black History Month, this month we are currently working with local Black artist Nia Musiba (@NiaMusiba on Instagram). Nia Musiba lives and eats and sleeps and goes to school and creates work and makes new friends in Portland. Her identity as an African-American woman and the daughter of a Tanzanian immigrant influence her work and her exploration of Blackness throughout history. Her creations are about being human, about hands and feet and bodies and love and sadness and flowers and sunshine. She views her depictions of Black and brown bodies as a direct response to the hyper-sexualization, brutalization, and overall negative depictions of BiPoC individuals within art and media.

A statement from Nia on design:

This design is built around the disconnect that can occur between parts of ourselves as well as between communities as a whole as a result of the digital divide. Technology is an incredible tool and a privilege. It has not only provided me with a more vibrant and more beautiful community that spans great distances, but it has helped me develop my ability to express parts of myself that once only existed in my mind through art and design. I hope this design serves as a reminder of the importance of technology in bringing pieces together and even more so serves as a reminder of the importance of togetherness.