Illustration & Design
Hello.
(it's me.)
I'm Teshika Silver. I have been drawing and creating since I was a child, and making a profession from it almost half my life. Art, creativity, and design is literally all I do, and because of that, the language of art is easy for me to translate visually with stunning results. Astratesh is more than just a brand, it's a persona that creates vivid, engaging visuals that radiate equity, love and justice. I hope you will join me on this journey, and the work we do together can be both invigorating and uplifting.
Bachelor of Fine Arts in Visual Communications Kendall College of Art and Design, 2004
Branding • Concept Development • Digital Illustration • Copywriting • Calligraphic & Hand-Drawn Fonts • Presentation
Professional Appointments
March 2019-Present Staff Illustrator - Sixty Inches For Center, Chicago, IL
Sep 2016-May 2019 Teaching Artist - “Drawing Comics”, Hyde Park Art Center, Chicago, IL
Sep 2017-June 2018 Teaching Artist - Chicago Public Schools, Chicago, IL
2018/2019 Summer Camp Teaching Artist, Hyde Park Art Center
Summer 2017 Young Cultural Stewards, Chicago Park District, Chicago, IL
Exhibitions
June 2021 Solo Exhibition, Liberation Among The Stars, Co-Prosperity Sphere, Chicago, IL
2020 Group Exhibition, LIP: Life In Progress, Hairpin Art Gallery, Chicago, IL (curated by AnySquared Gallery)
2019 Group Exhibition, Art After Dark Chicago, Woman Made Gallery, Chicago, IL (curated by Candice Randall)
2019 Self-Curated Group Exhibition, QUIC: Queer Underground Illustrators Chicago, Parlor & Ramp Gallery, Chicago, IL
2018 Group Exhibition, Do Not Resist? 100 Years Of Police Violence, Hairpin Art Center, Chicago, IL
2018 Self-Curated Group Exhibition, QUIC: Queer Underground Illustrators Chicago, Reunion Chicago, Chicago, IL
2018 Group Exhibition, ICUQTS: International Chicago Underground Queer Transcendance Symposium, Troy Street Warehouse - Pilsen, Chicago, IL (curated by TRQPiTECA)
2017 Self-Curated Exhibition, #HEXYEAHWITCHES, Plus Gallery, Chicago, IL
2016 Group Exhibition, Ain’t No Mothership: An Expedition Of She, Fulton Street Collective, Chicago, IL (Curated by Caira Lee Conner-Ware (afroxnaut))
Commissions
Public:
2021 Bandana Design for Fundraiser, National Day Laborer Organizing Network (NDLON), Pasadena, CA
2021 Illustration and Design for Fundraiser, “Meeting The Moment Building The Movement”, 826 National, San Fransisco, CA
2020 Illustration for Wheat Paste Banner, Vends + Vibes: New Constellations, Arts & Public Life, Chicago, IL
2020 Illustration for Poster Fundraiser, CO-GRID 19, Nationwide
2020 Illustrations/Designs Posters, Brochure and Billboard, Women With A Vision, New Orleans, LA
2020 Coloring Book Page, Reader Coloring Book Fundraiser, Chicago Reader, Chicago, IL
2020 Fantasy Gig Poster, “Big Floyd”, Chicago Reader, Chicago, IL
2016 Poster Art Commission, Department of African American Studies, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ
Corporate:
2019 Logo and Branding Redesign, AIDS Foundation Chicago (commissioned through People Who Care/Elijah McKinnon)
Residencies
Summer 2021 Swarm Artist Residency
Fall 2018 Teaching Artist Residency, Hyde Park Art Center, Chicago, IL
Fall 2017 The Bridge Program, Hyde Park Art Center, Chicago, IL
Grants
2021 - SECC Artist Microgrant
2020 - 3Arts/Arts Alliance Illinois COVID-19 Emergency Relief Fund