Who We Are
Elisheba Johnson, she/her
Co-Founder and Curator
Elisheba’s Johnson's vision for cultural placemaking drives our growth as a cultural institution. She served as public art manager for the city’s Office of Arts and Culture and founded and operated Faire Gallery and Café before becoming Wa Na Wari’s curator. Elisheba is a conceptual artist heavily influenced by the Fluxus movement and the accessibility of art experiences and objects. She sees art “taking the role of philosophy in the 21st century” and providing “the frame for discussing and solving our complex and important civic problems." Johnson, who has a BFA from Cornish College of the Arts, was the owner of Faire Gallery Café, a multi-use art space that held art exhibitions, music shows, poetry readings and creative gatherings. Between 2013 and 2019, Johnson was at the Seattle Office of Arts & Culture as public art project manager.
In 2018, Johnson started a public art practice with her collaborator Kristen Ramirez. They believe in creating opportunities that bring equity, accessibility, relevance, and engagement to a community, and they believe that every project ought to begin with meaningful engagement with the people who occupy the place, whether through questionnaires, story-telling, historical research, or celebration. Elisheba is currently a member of the Americans for the Arts Emerging Leaders Network advisory council and has won four Americans for the Arts Public Art Year in Review Awards for her work.
Photo by James Harnois
Inye Wokoma, he/him
Co-Founder and Land Steward:
Inye Wokoma has been the Guardian of Estate for his grandmother, Goldyne Green, since 2016. He is instrumental in coordinating a site control vision between Wa Na Wari and the Green family. He is also the co-lead organizer in our work with Black homeowners. Inye's family has lived in the Central District since the 1940s. As a journalist, filmmaker and visual artist, he explores themes of identity, community, history, land, politics and power through the lens of personal and visual narratives. His work is informed by a deep social practice that prioritizes the utility of his art to the collective welfare of his community. Three of his most recent projects, A Central Vision, An Elegant Utility, and This Is Who We Are, represent prismatic explorations of the history, current experience, and future of Seattle’s African American Community. In addition to these projects, Inye has been working in collaboration with Seattle Public Library and colleague Jill Freidberg to create a catalog of oral histories of Seattleites reflecting on community history and current changes.
Inye completed a degree in journalism and filmmaking from Clark Atlanta University before establishing Ijo Arts Media Group in Seattle. His work as a photojournalist has appeared in USA Today, ColorsNW, Washington Law and Politics, and Chicago Wilderness, among others. In 2004 and 2006 respectively, he received two awards for editorial photography from the Society of Professional Journalists Western Washington Chapter, for coverage of the communities of color in the wake of 9/11 and Hurricane Katrina.
Inye’s collaboration with journalist Silja Talvi on Washington State’s three strikes law won a 2004 National Council on Crime and Delinquency PASS Award for criminal justice reportage. These journalism awards were earned while shooting for ColorsNW Magazine under the editorial guidance of Naomi Ishisaka. His film Lost & (Puget) Sound, received a 2012 Telly Award and won Best Film for Youth at the Colorado Environmental Film Festival. In 2017, he participated in the visual arts group show Borderlands, which went on to receive an Americans for the Arts 2018 Public Art Network Year in Review Award, for its collective exploration of national identity, immigration, and belonging. Inye continues to serve his community from his home in Seattle’s Central District, where he currently serves as board president for LANGSTON. He was a founding board member and former board president for Got Green and also served on the board of Nature Consortium.
Dr. Kristin McCowan, she/her
CACE 21 Survey Development Lead / Data Analysis Co-Lead
Dr. Kristin McCowan is a professor of social work, community researcher and facilitator. Kristin studies adolescent well-being and sociopolitical development (eg. critical consciousness). As a community research consultant, Kristin has worked with many local organizations on program design & evaluation, survey development & implementation and community engagement strategies.
Zola Mumford, she/her
Co-Director, Seattle Black Spatial Histories Institute
Zola Mumford is an academic librarian, researcher, and writer. From 2003 to 2022, she was Curator of the Seattle Black Film Festival, a program of LANGSTON, a nonprofit arts organization. Mumford has served as a Washington State Book Awards judge and continues to be a speaker and panelist on subjects ranging from archival research to film history to science fiction/speculative fiction. Her professional background also includes media and arts production; historical research; and preservation work with film and print materials in university and private film and art archives.
KL Shannon, she/her
CACE 21 Community Organizing Lead
KL Shannon grew up in the Central District. She has been a committed community organizer addressing issues that impact the BIPOC community.
Kinnetta Johnson, she/her
Food Justice Coordinator
Kinnetta Johnson joins the Wa Na Wari Family bringing 23 years of experience in the culinary industry. Kinnetta attended Seattle Central College and is a graduate of Seattle Central Culinary Academy. Born and raised in Seattle, Kinnetta took an interest in cooking at an early age and what began as a passion soon turned into a professional pursuit. Kinnetta joins Wa Na Wari as our new Food Justice coordinator and leaves behind a long career with QFC as a Produce clerk and Floral Manager. After graduating from Culinary School, Kinnetta decided she didn't want to cook in a traditional restaurant setting and instead wanted to serve her community in a meaningful and impactful way. Through her relationship in the community, she jump started her career as a nanny and private chef. Kinnetta is both eager and excited to become our new food Justice Coordinator in a push to expand our food program and create more space and opportunities for BIPOC chefs while providing good quality meals for the community. Kinnetta is passionate about food and nutrition and is excited to bring her talent and ideas to Wa Na Wari.
Yirim Seck, he/him
Facilities Manager
Yirim Seck is a wordsmith MC whose music both reflects the golden era of hip-hop and holds a roadmap to the future. Yirim is not only held firm by his roots -- bridging the illustrious musical legacy of Seattle’s Central District and his family’s rich Senegalese heritage -- but propels his insight and drive into a sound and a message all-too-relevant for today.
Briana Kennedy, she/her
Gallery Host & Social Media Manager
Briana is a Seattle Native who grew up in the Central District. Her community has helped cultivate her love of art and how it has been the heartbeat of our city for generations. When she is not working at Wa Na Wari, she’s blending herbal remedies for her company Two Witches Apothecary. Briana is excited to call Wa Na Wari home and she can’t wait to meet you all on the Porch.
Jill Freidberg, she/her
Co-Founder and Assistant Culture Keeper
Jill Freidberg helps with behind the scenes logistics at Wa Na Wari and co-directs the Seattle Black Spatial Histories Institute. Her work reflects her belief that responsible storytelling can build understanding and solidarity across borders and across the street. Freidberg is a documentary filmmaker, oral historian, radio producer, and youth media educator. She founded Shelf Life, a community story project using oral history, photography, public art, and podcasts to amplify community voices, learn from neighborhood stories, and interrupt narratives of erasure in Seattle’s Central District. Freidberg has produced and directed four award-winning feature-length documentaries, including the ground-breaking collaborative effort This is What Democracy Looks Like (2000), and countless documentary shorts. She also teaches media production at the University of Washington Bothell.
Rachel Kessler, Co-founder Emeritus
Rachel Kessler is one of the four co-founders of Wa Na Wari. She stepped down from the Executive Leadership Cohort at the end of 2021.
Rachel is a writer, cartoonist, multi-disciplinary collaborator and educator who explores landscape and community. As a mother of young children with limited resources, she experimented with boundary-breaking performance art and video, co-founding interactive poetry collaborations Typing Explosion and Vis-à-Vis Society. Her work is deeply rooted in place: she lives and works on Yesler Way, the street her great-great grandparents immigrated to, worked on, and died on. She was an Artist-In-Residence at public housing project Yesler Terrace, where community members activated a vacant apartment slated for demolition with live music, storytelling, potlucks, dancing, and collective murals. Currently she works on a community cartography project called “Profanity Hill: A Tour of Yesler Way.”