Amy Sherald

Amy Sherald is an acclaimed painter known for her distinctive portraiture that explores identity and representation. Sherald’s work, characterized by her use of gray skin tones, challenges conventional views of race, encouraging viewers to focus on her subjects' individuality through evocative details like clothing, expression, and body language. Her portraits aim to tell universal stories while subtly addressing social realities.

Sherald's approach begins with photographing everyday people she encounters, such as surfers from New York’s Rockaway Beach or dirt bike riders from Baltimore. She integrates these contemporary subjects into the long tradition of portrait painting, creating narratives that reflect modern life. In 2018, she became the first Black woman to be selected for a presidential portrait commission, painting former First Lady Michelle Obama. Sherald has since portrayed figures like Breonna Taylor, crafting images that emphasize the full humanity of her subjects rather than solely their tragic or iconic moments. The breadth and scope of her work will be on exhibit at The San Francisco Museum of Modern Art in the fall of 2024 before traveling to the Whitney Museum of American Art in New York.

Through her artwork, Sherald addresses broader themes of inclusivity, focusing on the often marginalized or overlooked individuals in American history. Her innovative use of portraiture continues to contribute to the evolving narrative of American art.

She received her MFA in Painting from Maryland Institute College of Art and BA in Painting from Clark-Atlanta University and was a Spelman College International Artist-in-Residence in Portobelo, Panama. In 2016, Sherald was the first woman to win the Outwin Boochever Portrait Competition grand prize.