Debut billboard for Kanbe’s Markets by Lynn Hopkins, a 2025 illustration graduate of KCAI (Kanbe’s Markets)
Spanning a billboard in mid-July, an illustrated scene depicted curious children peering over the edge of a table filled with fresh produce. The colorful billboard rose above the corner of 63rd Street and Holmes near Billie’s Juicery in Brookside. Kansas City Art Institute student Lynn Hopkins (’25 Illustration) produced the inaugural artwork for a billboard series dubbed WELLUSTRATIONS.
WELLUSTRATIONS project leader Mary Kemper Wolf envisioned the series as a way to highlight “collaboration and civic creativity among Kansas City’s institutions, innovators and artists.”
“The goal of WELLUSTRATIONS is to shed light on the many organizations doing inspiring, community-centered work across the city,” said Wolf.
Hopkins was one of the students who participated in the Art Institute’s MICRO Agency Program. The immersive professional development course in the school’s illustration department connected students with clients to develop a purpose-driven campaign.
Kanbe’s Markets, the initial nonprofit client featured in the billboard series, focuses on addressing food insecurity for underserved Kansas City communities. In 2025, Kanbe’s will rescue more than 1.25 million pounds of fresh produce to provide fresh fruits and vegetables for more than 250,000 residents through a unique network of 100 fresh food access points and hunger relief organizations across the Kansas City metro area.
Hopkins created an illustration that conveyed themes of collective wellness, access to fresh food, inclusive food systems and community connection.
“I filled the children’s faces with curiosity to encourage viewers to seek out fresh produce for themselves and their loved ones. I infused every brushstroke with color and expression to reflect the vibrancy of community life,” said Hopkins.
“What’s exciting about the WELLUSTRATIONS project is that it’s a collaborative process. Each project emerges from a conversation with a chosen nonprofit,” said Wolf. “Looking ahead, we’d love to continue collaborating with KCAI and also provide a platform for a variety of partners and artists to be able to share their vision of what community wellbeing means to them.”
The artist and nonprofit client will rotate with each edition of the billboard series. Another potential theme explores the connection between music and mental health.
“We felt that Art as Mentorship would be a fitting partner for this theme because this connection is central to their work in giving young people resources to express themselves in healthy ways while also building the skills and experience they need to thrive. This is exactly the kind of message that we’re looking to promote in this series,” said Wolf.
The current WELLUSTRATION installation will be on view for six months. Since the property is for sale, discussions for an ongoing presence would need to involve potential new ownership. If access to the 63rd Street and Holmes billboard remains, then the collaboration will continue with the KCAI Micro Agency program. Meanwhile, other WELLUSTRATION sites are planned.
“For example, we are currently developing a joyful installation with Simple Mischief Studio to debut next year on two large-format digital billboards downtown,” said Wolf.
