{"id":159284,"date":"2026-05-11T17:45:00","date_gmt":"2026-05-11T22:45:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/milwaukeenns.org\/?p=159284"},"modified":"2026-06-02T15:35:14","modified_gmt":"2026-06-02T20:35:14","slug":"peeling-back-barriers-milwaukee-fruit-artist-brings-a-fresh-approach-to-healthy-eating","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/milwaukeenns.org\/2026\/05\/11\/peeling-back-barriers-milwaukee-fruit-artist-brings-a-fresh-approach-to-healthy-eating\/","title":{"rendered":"Peeling back barriers: Milwaukee fruit artist brings a fresh approach to healthy eating","gt_translate_keys":[{"key":"rendered","format":"text"}]},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Inside Greenwood Park Gallery and Framing, 4233 W. Fond du Lac Ave., attendees gathered for a Mindful Mondays MKE event. There, a display of intricately carved fruits drew people in for a bite, as Imani Raiyne, founder of Kreative Fruitz, educated visitors on what fruit could become.<\/p>\n\n\n

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\u201cI always say (it started) in my mother’s womb. I know that may sound crazy, but I was the only one of my siblings that my mother made a watermelon creation for her baby shower,\u201d Raiyne said. \u201cShe didn\u2019t do it for my other siblings.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mindful Mondays MKE is a community initiative that brings together residents and local business owners through events focused on networking.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Latanya Evans puts out fresh fruit during Mindful Mondays MKE at Greenwood Park Gallery.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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Imani Raiyne, founder of Kreative Fruitz, wears custom-painted shoes.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

Raiyne\u2019s introduction to fruit art began at home with her mother, Gina.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Imani Raiyne and Latanya Evans mount posters on poster board.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Following her diagnosis of lupus at 11, one year after her mother\u2019s own diagnosis of lupus, she became homeschooled. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

As a part of her new curriculum, her mother taught her fruit art, combining nutrition lessons with art classes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cJanuary 2017 is when the lupus took my mother away from me, in the physical form,\u201d Raiyne said. \u201cIt definitely was a very, very dark and rough time for me.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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A hand-carved orange sits inside a custom-made sculpture by Imani Raiyne.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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A custom-made fresh fruit sculpture by Imani Raiyne.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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Fresh fruit sits inside a custom-made sculpture.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

Six months later, while creating a fruit display for her father\u2019s retirement party, Raiyne found a renewed sense of purpose.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI felt reconnected with my mother, and at that moment, I knew that this is what I needed to do. It saved my life,\u201d Raiyne said. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

What started as a special activity with her mother grew into a business. Raiyne officially launched Kreative Fruitz, offering catering, fruit arrangements and hands-on workshops designed to make healthy eating more engaging. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Almost nine years later, she\u2019s still doing what she loves despite her limitations. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI’m not able to just work a regular nine-to-five job because of my health. Doing fruit art has given me an outlet to be free to do what I want to do, when I want to do it and how I want to do it,\u201d Raiyne said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Imani Raiyne puts up posters with photographs of her custom-made edible sculptures.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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Imani Raiyne places fresh fruit in a container to hand out.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

Through her work across Milwaukee, Raiyne said she has seen first-hand how unfamiliar people can be with fruits. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI have been blown away at the amount of people that I’ve come in contact with in my nine years that have never had fruit before, but they try it with me,\u201d Raiyne said. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Raiyne completed her National Nutrition Educator certification recently, with her goal being to help bridge the gap by making fruit approachable and creative for people, while remaining nutritious and educational. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI\u2019m not a magician or a medical doctor or anything like that, but I just try to help make people feel better,\u201d Raiyne said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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A poster of a custom fruit sculpture, \u201cMilestonez of Fruitz,\u201d by Imani Raiyne. (Photo provided by Imani Raiyne)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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A poster of a custom fruit sculpture, \u201cCollborationz of Fruitz,\u201d by Imani Raiyne. (Photo provided by Imani Raiyne)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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A poster of a custom fruit sculpture, \u201cCustomize of Fruitz,\u201d by Imani Raiyne. (Photo provided by Imani Raiyne)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

Chrishella Roch\u00e9, founder and owner of VIBEZ Creative Arts Space, recently had Raiyne teach a workshop on fruit art and nutritional education through the Together We Create program. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

VIBEZ Creative Arts Space is  for the community to explore art through all different mediums.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cShe was very intentional and the kids really enjoyed it,\u201d Roch\u00e9 said. \u201cOne of the fruits they tried was dragon fruit. It was new to some of the students, and that\u2019s really what we enjoy, especially healthy snack options.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As she expands Kreative Fruitz, Raiyne said she hopes to educate and empower Milwaukeeans, one piece of fruit at a time. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Imani Raiyne, founder of Kreative Fruitz by Imani Raiyne, poses for a portrait during Mindful Mondays MKE at Greenwood Park Gallery and Framing.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Jonathan Aguilar is a visual journalist at Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service who is supported through a partnership between <\/em>CatchLight Local <\/em><\/a>and <\/em>Report for America<\/em><\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false,"gt_translate_keys":[{"key":"rendered","format":"html"}]},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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