Baltimore-based artist Kibibi Ajanku channels the spirit of the African Diaspora through ritual, research, and ancestral aesthetics. She founded Sankofa Dance Theater in 1989, blending West African traditions with contemporary performance to create immersive journeys across time and memory.
Baltimore native Devin Allen is an award-winning, self-taught photographer who rose to prominence in 2015 when his photo of the Baltimore Uprising appeared on the cover of TIME magazine. His work has been featured in top institutions including the Smithsonian, Studio Museum in Harlem, and Baltimore Museum of Art. Allen is also the founder of the youth arts program Through Their Eyes, and his work continues to explore activism, community, and identity.
Born in rural Georgia in 1930, Benny Andrews fused memory, imagination, and social commentary in his vibrant collages and paintings. A child of sharecroppers, he overcame early poverty to study at the Art Institute of Chicago, later becoming a major force in American art. His works are housed in over 30 major museums, including MoMA, the Met, and the Art Institute of Chicago.
Gregory Bannister is a prolific Baltimore-based painter whose devotion to his craft is evident in every canvas. Whether working at Make Studio or painting at home, Bannister's art reflects both dedication and joy. He continually experiments with materials and styles, contributing to a vibrant community of local artists.
Romare Bearden (1911–1988) was a towering figure in 20th-century American art. Raised in the heart of the Harlem Renaissance, his work reflected Black life through collage, music, memory, and myth. With pieces in the MoMA, Whitney, and Baltimore Museum of Art, Bearden's legacy continues to resonate in American culture.
Philadelphia-born artist Barbara Bullock channels the cultural richness of the African Diaspora into powerful, abstract forms. Drawing from mythology, music, and current events, her work explores identity, spirituality, and Black life. Bullock’s art has been widely exhibited and is held in numerous major collections.
A groundbreaking sculptor and printmaker, Elizabeth Catlett (1915–2012) created powerful works centered on Black and Mexican life. The first African American woman to earn an MFA in sculpture, she spent much of her life in Mexico, where she fused art and activism. Her subjects ranged from maternal figures to Black Power icons, and her legacy lives on in over 50 solo exhibitions worldwide.
Sonya Clark is a Washington, DC-born artist whose work braids together African heritage, hair rituals, and identity. With degrees in psychology, textiles, and fine art, her pieces draw from Yoruba culture and personal history. A professor at Amherst College, her art can be found in top institutions including the Baltimore Museum of Art and National Museum of Women in the Arts.
Kevin Cole is a prolific mixed-media artist born in Pine Bluff, Arkansas. Known for his vibrant, curvilinear works incorporating necktie motifs, Cole reflects on civil rights, jazz, and resilience. With over 475 exhibitions and 45 public commissions, his art appears in the Smithsonian’s National Museum of African American History and Culture and collections across the U.S.
New Jersey-based artist Willie Cole transforms found objects into witty, soulful assemblages. Drawing from Yoruba traditions, Dadaism, and urban Americana, his work radiates spiritual energy and cultural critique. A former resident of the Studio Museum in Harlem, Cole’s pieces reside in The Met, Studio Museum, and Petrucci Family Foundation collections.
Eldzier Cortor (1916–2015) was a Chicago-raised painter who spotlighted the dignity and resilience of Black women, especially within Gullah communities. His elongated forms and African influences challenged mid-20th-century norms. A WPA-era artist, his work appears in the Smithsonian, Studio Museum in Harlem, and the Art Institute of Chicago.
A pioneering artist, curator, and scholar, Dr. David Driskell (1931–2020) elevated African American art within academia and museums. Known for his collage and print work, he curated the seminal 1976 exhibition Two Centuries of Black American Art. He founded the David C. Driskell Center and was awarded the National Humanities Medal in 2000.
A Baltimore-based visual artist and musician, Landis Expandis blends surreal painting with soulful sound. A founding member of All Mighty Senators and the trio F City, he fuses music and color into striking performances and artworks. His pieces have been exhibited in galleries and salons across Baltimore.
Canadian artist Michael Gibson creates hyper-realistic graphite works that often leave viewers questioning whether they’re looking at photos. Trained at Sheridan College, his mastery of pencil drawing has earned him acclaim across North America. His pieces are featured in exhibitions and collections including the David Driskell Center.
Sam Gilliam (1933–2024) revolutionized abstract painting with his innovative draped canvases and bold color fields. A major figure in the Washington Color School, he later created dynamic collages inspired by jazz legends. A devoted educator, Gilliam taught at MICA, Carnegie Mellon, and the University of Maryland.
Allison Janae Hamilton crafts mythic, immersive installations centered on the Southern landscape. Raised between Florida and Tennessee, her work weaves folklore, environmental justice, and ancestral memory. Exhibited at MoMA and MASS MoCA, Hamilton gives voice to land as a protagonist in the Black American story.
Baltimore artist Gerald Hawkes began sculpting with matchsticks after surviving a life-altering mugging. Once a high school printing teacher and medical specialist, his art became a lifeline and a metaphor for transformation. His work is in the permanent collection of the American Visionary Art Museum.
Robin Holder is a New York-based artist whose layered mixed-media works explore race, identity, and belonging. Drawing from her African-Russian-Jewish-Caribbean heritage, she fuses painting, printmaking, and storytelling to challenge marginalization and uplift universal truths. Her work is housed in major collections including Yale and the David Driskell Center.
A printmaker, professor, and cultural visionary, Curlee Raven Holton (b. 1951) reflects on the Black experience through richly layered images. He founded the Experimental Printmaking Institute at Lafayette College and has collaborated with artists internationally. His works appear in the Met, High Museum, and Library of Congress.
Chicago-based Candace Hunter is a visual storyteller whose collage, installation, and performance works illuminate the history and struggles of Africans in America. Her art connects personal identity with collective memory, earning her the 3Arts Next Level Award and acclaim throughout the Midwest.
Baltimore artist and curator Jeffrey Kent creates conceptual work linking personal and historical narratives, often using layered materials that mirror America's racialized past. He founded major art spaces including BLIFTD STVDIOS and Sub-Basement Studios, and his work appears in collections such as the Reginald F. Lewis Museum and the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts.
Gwendolyn Knight-Lawrence (1913–2005) was a Harlem Renaissance artist and partner to Jacob Lawrence. A poet with paint, she explored dance, identity, and diaspora across oil, watercolor, and gouache. Her work is held in major collections including MoMA and the Seattle Art Museum.
Jacob Lawrence (1917–2000) was one of the most influential African American painters of the 20th century. Known for his dynamic series like The Migration of the Negro, Lawrence chronicled Black life with vivid panels and poetic clarity. His work is in the Met, MoMA, and Smithsonian collections.
Baltimore-based artist Megan Lewis blends bold palette knife painting with rich textile patterns. Her figurative works explore Black identity, transformation, and empowerment. From public murals to national ad campaigns, her visual voice has become a powerful force in contemporary art.
Former ICU nurse turned artist, Nate Lewis sculpts photographs into layered, anatomical reflections on race, empathy, and memory. Based in NYC, his paper interventions appear in the Studio Museum, BMA, and international collections. His work has been featured at Yale and Paris Photo.
Samella Lewis (1924–2022) was a groundbreaking artist, historian, and activist. A protégé of Elizabeth Catlett, she earned a PhD in art history and founded the Museum of African American Art. Her teaching and curatorial legacy elevated generations of Black artists and scholars.
Baltimore native Tom Miller coined the vibrant style “Afro-Deco,” blending screenprints, painted furniture, and found objects. A graduate of MICA, his work has been widely collected and celebrated, with major retrospectives at the Baltimore Museum of Art and pieces in numerous museum collections.
Charly Palmer is a celebrated fine artist and illustrator whose work spans Olympic posters to TIME magazine covers. Known for richly textured acrylic portraits, Palmer has illustrated award-winning children’s books and his art explores race, activism, and heritage with evocative power.
Maryland native Wendell Poindexter is an educator, illustrator, and fine artist with deep roots in Baltimore’s creative community. A longtime professor at Frederick Community College, his work blends publication design with fine art, and he’s been honored for his contributions to Black culture in Maryland.
Steve A. Prince is a New Orleans-born printmaker, educator, and “art evangelist” whose vibrant works merge spirituality, music, and community. Now Director of Engagement at William & Mary’s Muscarelle Museum, he has exhibited and taught internationally, infusing art with the spirit of a New Orleans jazz funeral.
Atlanta-based artist Tokie Rome-Taylor uses photography, portraiture, and object curation to explore African American identity, spirituality, and cultural erasure. Her layered compositions confront history and reclaim ancestral power, with exhibitions spanning from Brazil to major American museums.
Sculptor and printmaker Alison Saar creates powerful, totemic works that explore race, gender, and spirituality. Influenced by African, Caribbean, and Latinx traditions—as well as her parents Betye and Richard Saar—her art is rooted in cultural storytelling and found materials. Her work is held by MoMA, the Whitney, and the National Museum of Women in the Arts.
Ziggy Sayeed is a rising Baltimore artist and mentee of photographer Devin Allen. Still in high school, Ziggy’s work debuted at Galerie Myrtis, marking him as a bold new voice in the city’s vibrant creative scene. He is currently exploring college options in the U.S. and the U.K.
MacArthur “Genius” Joyce J. Scott is a Baltimore-born multidisciplinary artist known for using beads, glass, and found objects to confront racism, sexism, and violence. A fierce storyteller and activist, her works are featured in major institutions including the Met, Smithsonian, and Baltimore Museum of Art.
A founding member of AfriCOBRA, Nelson Stevens (1938–2022) infused his vibrant, politically-charged art with the energy of Black pride and community uplift. A longtime professor at UMass Amherst, his work has been exhibited at the Cleveland Museum of Art, Whitney Museum, and internationally.
Philadelphia-based artist Richard Watson has spent decades blending agrarian imagery, abstraction, and Black cultural expression. A curator and educator, he was a key figure at the African American Museum in Philadelphia. His work is held in major collections including the Schomburg Center and PAFA.