a b o u t
Borealis (they/them/beau/bo) is a social artist, writer, and educator who strives to produce works that are caring, porous, and reciprocal. They are currently collaborating with practical support organizations and peer careworkers on the edible social work breadbox, and are plotting the podcast Care Tactics with Solarpunk Surf Club. They produce caring risograph print works and have a full-spectrum carework practice. (updated: 1/25/23)
Beau received a Bachelor of Science in Art and undergraduate certificate in Gender and Women’s Studies from University of Wisconsin-Madison in 2012; they went on to receive a Master of Science in Educational Leadership and Policy from Portland State University with a graduate emphasis in community-based learning in 2014. They taught Art + Social Justice and Service-Learning in Art as a lecturer at University of Wisconsin-Madison; they also taught at Preschool of the Arts and Monroe Street Arts Center before co-founding ArtWrite Collective, which merged with Arts + Literature Laboratory in 2018. Borealis served as the Education & Outreach Director at Arts + Literature Laboratory until mid-2021, which they viewed as an extension of their social practice and an outlet to advocate for peer artists. Beau is continuing their education and growing their network of collaborators through an MFA program at University of Kentucky, and through multiple community-based carework training programs. They volunteer with Exhale Pro-Voice and Kentucky Health Justice Network. Beau remains in solidarity with peers who face the life-altering debt imposed by imperialist forms of credentialism, and is committed to leveraging their resources for the common good.