2026-2027 Grant Mini Mind Lab

Johara Gould is a multi-media artist from New Orleans who is combining her art-making skills with automotive technician skills to create the ultimate live/work space. She is converting a 1996 Vandura bus into a Mini Mind Lab – a place for creativity to thrive. “My vision for this bus is to become my largest tool, the mini mind lab where I dream & manifest, be my default safe space wherever I go,” explains Gould, who will be using this grant to bring this vision to life.

The Mini Mind Lab will eventually rest on Gould’s campsite - a place where she seeks solitude and restoration. “I need my own space where I can breathe without a clock being set to it,” she explains. The bus will also allow Gould to travel, which she sees as an act of shedding mental, emotional, and spiritual waste. “The longer I stay in New Orleans, the more I desire to travel. The more I travel, the more I desire New Orleans,” she reflects.

Although the bus’s original owner requested that she not modify it, she says it is in her nature to do exactly that. She is in the process of removing the ceiling and walls, sanitizing the interior, installing an air vent and moon roof, wiring solar panels, wood paneling, lights, flooring, and more. Gould first learned carpentry at YAYA and is designing furniture that may be stored easily to make room for larger creative projects. “A Mind Lab is my version of a studio, come up with ideas, create. Because it’s mobile, explore for inspiration,” Gould elaborates.

Johara Gould first joined the YAYA Guild in 2002.