We were lucky to catch up with Alexander Lancaster recently and have shared our conversation below.

Alexander, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. What’s been the most meaningful project you’ve worked on?

I am currently working on a project for the “We Are Silver Lake” Association in Silver Lake, Kansas. This dedicated group of residents aims to instill pride in our charming small town. They have entrusted me with designing a mural that highlights the rich history of Silver Lake. Personally, I have witnessed the positive impact such projects can have on both residents and travelers passing through. Another significant endeavor I’ve been involved in is the Two Block Chalk Walk, now famously known as Topeka’s Chalk Festival. This vibrant and creative event unfolds in downtown Topeka, Kansas, orchestrated by the Two Wolves Artist Collective. Let me share some key details about this delightful festival:
Objective: Participants of all ages, from the young to the young at heart, come together to create captivating chalk art on the city’s sidewalks. The goal? To cover as much distance as possible with colorful and imaginative designs. In a previous year, they achieved an impressive record by covering 4,339 feet of sidewalk with chalk art!
Community Involvement: The festival thrives on community participation. Designated sidewalks transform into canvases for artists, and chalk is generously provided. Everyone is welcome to contribute their artistic flair. Additionally, special guest artists are invited to create featured pieces.
Family-Friendly: Families are encouraged to join in the fun! Bring your favorite chalks, cameras, and creative spirit. This free and enjoyable event is open to all, making it a perfect outing for families and friends alike2.
So, if you have a soft spot for sidewalk chalk and want to immerse yourself in a colorful, community-driven art extravaganza, the Topeka Chalk Art Festival is where you need to be!
Apart from formal fundraisers, the Two Wolves Studio plays a vital role in fostering community engagement. Our gallery serves as a hub for creativity, allowing artists to connect with the public and showcase their remarkable work.

Alexander, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

I was born in the south and raised in Picayune Mississippi where I lived with my grandparents through the early years of my life and with my mom and Stepdad some of the time. I was raised with 6 siblings, me being the second oldest of the bunch. We had a very hard life growing up, being homeless, abused and sometimes neglected. It was a hard beginning of life. My mother is mixed with Native American and Caucasian. She and my siblings have dark complexion  and in the lower Mississippi, we experienced the KKK showing up at a church we went to, they were standing out front when the church let out with cross burning and told the pastor to never let us come back to that church. That’s when we started going to Black Churches and they were the best! A southern black church is a great experience, in church. My step dad had mental issues and when we were home it was complete terror, my mother abused, my siblings and I abused, fights, blood, gunshots, animal abuse and even seeing the killing of my dog. There’s too much to talk about there but I bring it up because with the arts I’ve been able to be on the good side of the issues that families are facing nowadays. I utilize art to help our community.

I always knew I was an artist. My mom and uncle used to draw all the time and I always love to draw. I didn’t go to any higher education to learn the arts. I barely learned the arts in school, when I was able to go to school. We were living in Picayune Ms. during these years and eventually my mom had to flee the state to hide from the man we called step dad. Her and my sister hid out in Columbia Mo., a place we had no connection with anyone so he wouldn’t find them. During those years me and my two brothers couldn’t go to school due to records being lost, signatures, etc.  and eventually we had to move to Columbia in order to start back at school and all of us were behind due to the years of missing school and the education difference that was happening in Mississippi. I tried it, and ended up in a school for troubled kids, SLC. I didn’t graduate, I had to get a job and lawncare was the gig.

I started doing lawn care, eventually moved up to landscape design, this was my pacifier for the arts. I could use my art abilities to create art in landscapes. I loved it but eventually life happened. I have 4 kids and 3 were now living in Kansas, at the time, near the Potawatomi Reservation.
I was working many hours a day, still in Columbia Mo. and I needed a change. I moved to Kansas with a goal to be with my kids, to change my career and pursue the arts. I started with an airbrush, I created pieces and would video record the process. I had lots of feedback on Youtube, some bad and most good. It gave me a thick skin to move forward.
This is a lot of information about me but it is all part of the reason I am me.

On the reservation, I started a little league team, mainly because my son wanted to play. At the time I didn’t know how to be a head coach for a baseball team so I learned through studies on the internet. We had a team for 7 years, coaching the same kids into the next levels, from tball, coach pitch to them pitching and until they had to go to high school teams. I learned that if we focus on something long enough we can get good at it. After the team had to dismantle I started pursuing the goal of getting a studio in the new arts district in Topeka Kansas. I ended up at Shelly Bedsaul’s art studio where she had space for rent. I took a 3 month lease and learned a lot for the artist. She was a big inspiration, she had already been a part of an arts district in Seattle Wa. She had a lot to share with me. I started helping artists get their work in NOTO and started doing street Events, including the Two block Chalk Walk. Opportunities started opening up for me to move to a location I could start a gallery and artists collective.
I started witnessing the impact the arts can have on the community. I wanted to create a place that everyone feels welcomed, whether showing their art or seeing art. I wanted it to feel like a den rather than a gallery. I created Two Wolves Studio and Artist Den.

My inspiration for my art came from my surroundings. As a teen I would draw the cool stuff, skulls, human figures and heavy metal arts. Living on the reservation I saw the most beautiful sunsets and Kansas landscaping, they inspired me to paint those. I started with a focus to bring airbrush back to the fine arts, instead of being known for T shirts and vehicles. I’ve rarely done any of those and stayed with canvases mostly. I wanted our people to know Spray Art is real art.

It opened an opportunity to create a free will Graffiti Wall in Topeka giving other spray artists a way to be creative and involved in the the arts movement in Topeka. We had one artist that was featured in USA Today for his piece of George Floyd.
This opened opportunities for him to be shown in some prominent galleries in town and in Kansas City and other places. The wall has introduced many local artists into the art scene in Topeka as well as drawing artists into Topeka to create freely on this wall.

With my gallery as a main focus, we create an atmosphere for creatives to feel safe and welcomed. We have live music and weekly Jam sessions. We offer drawing sessions, painting sessions and special events.

Our newest project will be working with Children Service League of Kansas during the National Child Abuse Prevention (CAP) Month

In all we are about utilizing the arts to create a betterment in life for the people in our surroundings. We hope to inspire others to do the same.

What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?

For me the biggest reward is the positive effect it has on our community. How it has helped a lot of artists from budding and emerging artists, to professional artists. How it helps the people believe art can help change everything.

Seeing people I’ve worked with over the years rise up to new challenges and take on new endeavors. These are my rewards.
I know my kids believe in the arts and are pursuing something in the arts world. I have two chefs, a bodybuilder, and an actor. The actor is pursuing his art in NYC. One of my chefs is in Rochester NY, my youngest in Topeka Kansas. My efforts have been not to reward myself as much as the idea that one can chase a dream of being an artist and be successful.

It’s even when a stranger walks up to me and thanks me for what I’m doing in the city with our art.

What do you think is the goal or mission that drives your creative journey?

The goal is to help let people know that you can do something meaningful with their art and creativity. This is how we cope with things in life and how we can help make life better for our community.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://twowolvesstudio.business.site/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/two_wolves_studio/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TwoWolvesStudio
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@TwoWolvesStudioArtistDenTopeka

Image Credits
Credits: Alexander Lancaster