Voices of the Diaspora: The Artisans Behind the Canvas

Arcmanoro Niles (1989- ) is an American artist most widely known for using bright, vibrant colors to illustrate different facets of everyday life. These mundane scenes point to a complicated interior that contemplates loneliness and life overall. Niles is incredibly interested in color. He layers oranges, pinks, purples, blues, and greens to create vibrant colors and rich undertones for his subjects. He references Italian and Dutch baroque, history painting, Color Field painting, and ancient Egyptian sculpture in his work.  Niles received a BFA from the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts in 2013 and an MFA from the New York Academy of Art in 2015.

Augusta Savage (1892-1962), an American sculptor who worked during the Harlem Renaissance, was also an art teacher and community art director. Her best-known work of the 1920s was Gamin, an informal bust portrait of her nephew, for which she was awarded a Julius Rosenwald Fellowship to study in Paris in 1929.

Aïda Muluneh (1974- ) is an Ethiopian photographer. Her conceptual compositions reflect her interests in climate justice and feminist perspectives. Her photographs are colorful and bold and incorporate traditional Ethiopian dress and face markings. Primary colors (red, blue, yellow) are often seen in her photographs and reference Ethiopian wall paintings. Muluneh is the founder of Addis Foto Fest (AFF), the first international photography festival in East Africa. She strives to cultivate opportunities for emerging African photographers. 

Barthélémy Toguo (1967- ) is a Cameroonian painter and a visual and performing artist. He works across various mediums including photographs, prints, sculptures, videos, and installations. Toguo's works explore migration and travel. He is interested in concepts around language, documentation, and borders. Much of his work connects humans with the natural world through a hopeful lens.   Between 1989 and 1993 he studied art, at the École des Beaux-Arts in Abidjan, Ivory Coast, Grenoble, France, and at the Kunstakademie in Düsseldorf, Germany. 

Basil Kincaid (1986- ) is an American multidisciplinary artist who incorporates quilting, collaging, photography, installation, and performance into his expansive practice. His large quilt works reflect his interest in African-American quilting traditions and West African textiles. His works forwards what's most important to him: family, imagination, rest, and experience.  Kincaid received his BA in Studio Art from Colorado College in 2010. 

Basil Watson, OJ CD (1958- ) is a Jamaican sculptor. His work captures the dynamic and energic of historic people and the spirit of freedom and spontaneity and strength. 

Belkis Ayón (1967-1999) was a Cuban artist known for her prints and engravings whose works explored beliefs, rituals, and myths of the Afro-Cuban all-male fraternal Abakuá secret society. She is well known for her use of the collagraphy technique. Much of her work is black and white featuring. Princess Sikan, appears often in her work, as she is the only female figure in the religion. Ayón received her Bachelor of Art in Printmaking from Art Superior Institute in 1991 in Havanna, Cuba

Billie Zangewa (1973- ) is a Malawian artist currently based in Johannesburg, South Africa. She creates silk tapestries. Her work considers personal narratives, feminism, and modern life. Using textiles, she pays close attention to the interiority of Black women's lives. Following the birth of her child, her work shifted to Black life broadly homelife and domesticity.  Zangewa received a degree in Fine Arts from Rhodes University, South Africa.