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2025 Artists in Residence – Kween and Raechele Lovell
Project title: Echoes of Liberation
The City of Guelph is delighted to announce Kween and Raechele Lovell as the City’s 2025 Artists-in-Residence (AiR).
Their project, Echoes of Liberation, will invite the Guelph community to explore movement, rest and resistance through an interdisciplinary residency grounded in afro-diasporic storytelling, dance and cultural memory.
For the first time in Guelph’s AiR history, dance will take centre stage as a core medium of artistic engagement. Through workshops, public performances and site-specific activations, Echoes of Liberation will animate public space and challenge residents of Thatinatón:ni (Guelph) to reflect on themes of displacement, land justice, housing instability and the politics of rest.
Over the course of the residency, Kween and Raechele will lead community-engaged programming including movement and storytelling workshops, public witnessing circles, decolonial dreaming sessions, and digital documentation of shared histories. Their work will centre racialized and displaced voices, while fostering intergenerational dialogue across communities.
The City’s Public Art Advisory Committee reviewed a wide range of applications for this year’s residency program, showcasing the creativity of Guelph’s vibrant arts scene. Kween and Raechele’s proposal stood out for its artistic innovation, strong local connections, and transformative community vision.
The public can participate in the Echoes of Liberation project over the summer and during Culture Days, which takes place from September 20 to October 13, 2025. For updates and engagement opportunities, visit guelph.ca/artistinresidence.
About the Artists
Kween (she/her)
Kween is a nationally awarded artist, entrepreneur, and cultural leader based in Guelph, Ontario. She is the Founder and CEO of The Kween Company and co-founder of The Heels Academy, both dedicated to uplifting BIPOC communities through performance, education, and unapologetic celebration. Crowned Canadian National Ms. 2023 and a recipient of the City of Guelph Medal of Honour, Kween is also a TEDx speaker, Randolph Academy valedictorian, and former Executive Director of the Guelph Black Heritage Society. Her work spans Rogers TV’s Diverse and Converse, organizing Guelph’s 2020 Black Lives Matter March and leading powerful collaborations with Guelph Dance and the Guelph Symphony Orchestra. Her practice is rooted in joy, justice and creating space for Black and Indigenous brilliance to thrive.
Find Kween on Instagram @kween.of.kweenz and @thekweencompany, and on Facebook @kweenkaylachristyne and @thekweencompany.
Raechele Lovell (she/they)
Raechele Lovell is a choreographer, performance artist, and cultural worker whose practice bridges embodied storytelling with decolonial disruption. Based on the Haldimand Tract (Kitchener, ON), she is the Founder and Executive Artistic Director of DiverseWorks Co., an Afrocentric arts company creating liberatory spaces for Black artists, youth and caregivers across so-called Canada. Her work moves through land, memory, and movement-blending dance-theatre, site-specific creation, and community-rooted performance to challenge colonial narratives and spark collective healing. Raechele was awarded the Black Excellence in Leadership Award and is the 2024-2025 Artist-in-Residence with DéPOT (Deindustrialization and the Politics of Our Time). Her decolonial praxis was developed through a Canada Council-funded residency at the Ubuntu Decolonial Arts Centre under the mentorship of d’bi.young anitafrika. Everything Raechele touches is led by rhythm, reclamation, and radical care. Her work doesn’t just respond to systems—it dreams beyond them.
Find Raechele on Instagram @heyitsmsrae and @diverseworksco, and on Facebook @raechele.lovell and @diverseworksco
About the Artist-in-Residence Program
The City of Guelph’s Artist-in-Residence program aims to broaden the community’s experience of the arts by inviting artists to engage with the public and showcase their creative practices while animating public spaces. The program aligns with the vision laid out in Guelph’s Culture Plan, fostering innovation through creativity, curiosity, and collaborative expression.
For more information
Cultural Program and Event Coordinator
Culture and Recreation, Public Services
City of Guelph
519-822-1260 extension 2629
[email protected]
TTY 519-826-9771