Cey Adams, a New York City native, draws inspiration from 60’s pop art, vintage sign painting and comics. His work focuses on themes including pop culture, brand identity, cultural and community issues.
Adams emerged from the downtown graffiti movement to exhibit alongside fellow artists Jean-Michel Basquiat and Keith Haring. Adams served as Creative Director for Hip-Hop mogul Russell Simmons’ Def Jam Recordings, creating visual identities, album covers for Run DMC, Beastie Boys, LL Cool J, Public Enemy, Notorious B.I.G., Maroon 5, and Jay-Z.
McCutcheon’s formal training began in the late 60s at Fisk University where she studied under renowned painter David Driscoll and sculptor Martin Puryear. She later studied collage with Jonathan Talbot and had conversations with Benny Andrews, who were both a great inspiration.
McCutcheon has always been drawn to portraits from any era. “…at first glance, one would not immediately describe my “Wallflower Portrait” series as such. However, they are my interpretation of portraits with a twist and a dash of teenage recollections of trying to become invisible by pretending to blend into my surroundings – I was and at times still am the proverbial “wallflower”.
Originally from a small town named Thibodaux, located 45 minutes from New Orleans., Holmes says of his work, “I create an abstract way of viewing different subject matters. My style is called expressionism. All my work is Acrylic on canvas. My biggest inspiration is life events around the world and my childhood to adulthood. I hope when my work is viewed by collectors, buyers and art lovers they walk away with substance. I hope within every piece that I create, someone can either relate to the situation, or they are interested to do research on the subject that I creatively put on canvas for them.”
Artist, curator, author, Art Historian, educator and scholar, Lewis, was born in New Orleans in 1924, later attended HBCU, Dillard University, where she was taught by Elizabeth Catlett before going on and becoming the first African American in the nation to receive a Ph.D. in Art History and Fine Art from Ohio University in 1951. Lewis was a pioneer in the area of African American Art and Artists, who documented the history of these artists in books, exhibitions, film, lectures and as an educator. In 1975 she founded the International Review of African American Art magazine to give visibility to these underserviced artists. Lewis has changed the landscape of Art History and has become an influential and highly respected voice that has also mentored and bolstered the careers of many African American artists. She is the recipient of a myriad of awards and distinctions and has exhibited in many important galleries and museums.