Affirm Black Women Portrait Series: Issa Rae
“I’m rooting for everybody Black.” - Issa Rae
It was a seemingly off the cuff remark on an Emmy’s Red Carpet event in 2017 but this instantaneous viral quote was really a distillation of Issa Rae’s whole ethos.
Whether it’s co-owning a coffee shop in her own neighborhood, creating two production companies to offer Black and women of color opportunities in spaces dominated by white men, or sourcing Black talent for her show Insecure on HBO, Rae is all in on rooting for Black creativity.
Rae says of the legacy she seeks to achieve, “ I want to be a pop culture staple, a Black pop culture staple. I want to have an impact on my community. Everything I’ve done has been for - and in thinking - of Black people, and I don’t take this moment lightly. I want to do right by us, at the end of the day.”
View the complete Affirm Black Women portrait series here
Excited to announce a collaboration with the Portland Stamp Company to create a series of limited edition artist stamps!
“For there is always light, if only we’re brave enough to see it. If only we’re brave enough to be it.” - Amanda Gorman
Going epic for this next portrait. At 36” x 48” it’ll be my largest portrait painting to date.
“White folks. When racism happens in public - YOUR SILENCE IS VIOLENCE.” - Leslie Mac
“For there is always light, if only we’re brave enough to see it. If only we’re brave enough to be it.” - Amanda Gorman
Sneak peek at a new portrait. This will be painted in acrylic on a smooth gessoed wood panel. Acrylic is still a relatively new medium for me and it feels like turning my brain inside out.
“Nobody would bother to beat you down if you were not a threat.” - Cicely Tyson
“We cannot afford to be tired or cynical. The cost is too great to let someone else write our story or erase our progress.” - Stacey Abrams
I’m more comfortable behind the brush or camera rather than the subject but my good friend, fellow artist, and remote coworker Alex Kujawa challenged me to post an #ArtVSartist.
Introducing the Phenomenal Black Women Memory Matching Game! Your favorite portraits and inspirational quotes are now an interactive educational card game.
“…I have dedicated my career to ensuring that the words engraved on the front of the Supreme Court building— ‘Equal Justice Under Law’—are a reality and not just an ideal.” — Ketanji Brown Jackson