Meet April Banks of mid wilshire, Los angeles

Today we’d like to introduce you to April Banks.

Hi April, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
I am a daughter, sister, and aunt with deep ancestral roots in Virginia. I came to Los Angeles 30 years ago next year. Following in the footsteps of family that migrated west decades before. I was running from a degree in architecture toward art, but without a plan on how to do so. I lived with my uncle in Altadena, on a street that was completely lost in the Eaton Fire this year.

I went to graduate school at Art Center College of Design in Pasadena and came out with some crazy ideas and nowhere to put them. My path in design and in art has not been a traditional one. But I have found my way through many twists and turns with a lot of international travel in between. Every path has led me to a what I do today, even those that felt like tangents. I’m glad I followed my intuition.

Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
My struggle was letting myself off the hook for not becoming an architect after so much was invested in me and expected of me by myself and others. I did not have a roadmap for the life I wanted. Now it’s much more acceptable to have multiple interests, to travel, to not call yourself one thing, to not be your work and to still be regarded as dedicated and passionate. Early on, I had a conversation with an elder artist who told me it might not be until the end of my career that it would all make sense. That conversation really lifted what felt like an immense pressure to define myself by standard labels. To be clear, I didn’t suddenly “make it” as an artist. I have maintained a design career as an exhibition designer, only taking on selective projects that feel complementary to my art and community practice. I’m grateful that the design education that gave me the skills for so many things, including public art.

As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
I am a visual artist and strategist and I create public art and public activations. My practice sits intentionally in between image, space, and experience. Recent work time traveling through historical archives and memories, questioning what we think we know of the past and how it informs our future identities. I work with communities to tell their stories—erased, imagined, and hoped for. I am interested in building a commons that proposes alternate histories and speculative worlds. I have been focused on the California coastal history of Black communities from Santa Monica to San Luis Obispo. Exploring why we are drawn to water and why access to it has historically been barred.

In 2024 I began a worldbending series called Outlandish, that grafts my lush dream world into speculative places and societies, challenging us to reorient toward reciprocity over extraction. Outlandish has alchemized as a solo exhibition and public art sculpture, an immersive tea with live performance, and a leap year almanac, with the next volume to coincide with the Los Angeles Olympics in 2028.

I also produce a project called Tea Afar which is a nomadic storytelling experience I launched after the elections in 2016. Tea Afar was conceived as a salve to bring us together across borders. I have collaborated with many people and organizations to produce over 16 events that center first person stories and hospitality traditions from around the world. This project has been my way of sharing my travels and challenging us to outlearn our biases by sipping tea and breaking bread together. I’m grateful for the many many participants, hosts and supporters of Tea Afar which will be 10 years old next year.

What do you like and dislike about the city?
There is something about the light in Los Angeles. It’s sharp and focused and makes everything high contrast and it feels like anything is possible. That feeling is also what can take you to the edge—of always chasing, of endless possibilities. But if you can find your calm, find your people, find your purpose, find your seasons, the city will hold whatever you dream up. I’ve left and I’ve returned. I’ve found beauty in the ocean and trails and pain in choked freeways and the suffering on our streets. The push and the pull of history that maps neighborhoods and the deep connections of generations make this city deep with story. A never-ending story.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://aprilbanks.com
• Instagram: aprilbanks_art

Image Credits
All image credits are in the file name