Meet Zeke Emmanuel | Visual Artist

We had the good fortune of connecting with Zeke Emmanuel and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Zeke, career-wise, where do you want to be in the end?
Something I constantly push for is enough success to share with others. One day I want to be able to share my experiences, knowledge, and resources with others so they may also have a great chance in getting what they want out of life. There has been many times in my career where I had to go without or suffer because of challenges I had to face independently, I wish to someday be that person that people can look to for a better start. My end goal is also to inspire and motivate the next generations because I believe true wealth and success is within the mind but hard to find.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
I consider myself a all around visual artist, because I have multiple talents its sometimes difficult for me to focus on one thing, often I find myself going in many directions at once with my creativity which is joyful but also overwhelming at times. I spent a lot of time sharpening my skills in drawing, painting as well as digital work, sacrificing the majority of my time to gain these skills has allowed me to flourish in the creative community and help others with there visions as well. Spending a lot of time developing my style has also encouraged me to make more art and share the meaning behind it with the rest of the world, I often enjoy peoples perceptions and I want to know if it is something they can relate or identify with as well.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
First I would take them on my famous bike tour, this is a tour that would start in Mexican Town and end in Downtown Detroit. On this tour we would ride our bikes to see all the murals and learn the history and information behind them along the way to the destination, then we would do the same with all the murals and art installations in the heart of downtown. If this visit was taking place in the spring I would also bring my friend to Movement weekend which is a huge techno festival that they would enjoy with good energetic music and people, as well as drinks and delicious food. Eastern Market would also be a must go to place for all of the art and murals going across majority of the buildings in the area made by a few local artist and a few artist from out of town as well. Saturday markets will be the most active day with a diverse crowd and multiple food vendors with fresh produce for sale. Lastly I think this visit would come to a great end with a garden tour, Rescue Nature Now is a farmland on the east side that has a beautiful landscape to explore filled with flower gardens, sectioned areas for growing food, and lots of cool art and visuals to add to the nature scenery.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
Recently I have been developing myself in the field of agriculture, learning healthier ways to eat and grow my own food and most of this is thanks to the DBFLF(Detroit Black Farmer Land fund) this organization has helped me spread more as an artist within my community and come across more people I can help and grow with. This group is very inspiring to me and has helped me gain land ownership for first time so that I can share my visions with the rest of my neighbors and peers who have also helped my rise.

Website: https://www.shootdopespot.com/category/zekedidit

Instagram: Zekedidit_

Image Credits
photos by Raymon Underwood (@x.rayjohn) and Stretch Limbs (@stretchlimbs)