Clarence Heyward
Using painting as my primary tool of communication, I make work examining my identity as a Black American man, husband and father; creating compositions documenting my life experiences and examining how the media and historical documentation are used to inform and misinform the perception of Black Americans and our collective culture. Much of my work is influenced by my memories which serve as a database filled with television shows, movies, music, and pop-culture which become metaphors and/or references used in my compositions.
In my work the media's depiction of Black Culture is referenced by the use of green skin. This is a direct reference to Chroma Key otherwise known as "green screen"technology. The process used for editing and shaping the perception of realities in film and television programming.
Positioning my family as the principal subjects in my work allows me to record our existence, absent of preconceived notions of Black culture and the superabundant depictions of trauma, and instead document the authenticity and realities of our lives from a first person perspective. Thus, providing an alternative entry into the conversation of existing while Black in America.
Clarence Heyward is a painter whose work explores notions of the Black American experience, primarily focusing on how the use of media and historical documentation are used to shape perceptions of Black American culture. His work investigates cultural truths, challenges stereotypes, and examines identity.
He has exhibited his work in spaces nationally including the 21c Museum of Durham, the Harvey B. Gantt Center for Cultural Arts, the Wiregrass Museum, the Museum of Science and Industry Chicago, Art Miami Art Fair, the Dallas Art Fair, the Container-Santa Fe, the North Carolina Museum of Art, the Nasher Museum of Art at Duke University, and (CAM) the Contemporary Art Museum of Raleigh.
Heyward was the recipient of The Brightwork Fellowship residency at Anchorlight Raleigh in 2019-2020, the Emerging Artist in Residence at Artspace, Raleigh in 2021, the Ragdale (IL) artist fellowship in 2022 , the 2022 Artist in Residence at NC State University, an IEA Artist in Residence at Alfred University in NY in 2023, and the Al Maqam artist residency in Marrakech, Morocco.. His work is in the collections of several notable private and public collections including the North Carolina Museum of Art, the Nasher Museum of Art, the Mint Museum of Art, the Minneapolis Institute of Art, the Ackland Art Museum, and the Cameron Museum of Art.
