Baltimore painter Amy Sherald has gone from obscurity to an overnight success story, becoming a well-known name in the art world. Ms. Sherald was chosen by Barack and Michele Obama to paint the portrait of the former First Lady for the Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery in Washington D.C. Following the prestigious honor to create history for the Obamas and America, she has also been asked to join the board of directors for the Baltimore Museum of Arts.
Although just recently receiving public recognition, Ms. Sherald has been honing her craft for years. Born in Columbus, Georgia, she earned her bachelor degree at Clark-Atlanta University in 1997, during which time she did an apprenticeship with artist, Dr. Arturo Lindsay from Spelman College. Thereafter she relocated to Baltimore, earning her MFA at the Maryland Institute College of Art, studying with Abstract Expressionist Grace Hartigan. The well-traveled artist has ventured beyond the states in pursuit of evolving and revealing her artistic abilities. Undertaking art residencies in Beijing China, and Oranjestad, Aruba, as well as a private study residency with Norwegian painter Odd Nerdrum.
Deeply aware of the scarcity of black images, her paintings are exclusively of African-Americans. The portrait of Michele Obama will be a stark contrast to the subjects that Ms. Sherald usually paints, as her paintings are of ordinary people. Those she may encounter going about her day as they are going about theirs. Her paintings, perhaps, capture images of everyday blackness, a single person staring ahead, brightly dress, not posed elaborately. Perhaps drinking a cup of tea or going fishing. They portray an image of black life, one that is not encased in struggle, politics, or protests. In Ms. Sherald’s paintings black folks are simply people living their lives. A privilege that is often lost in depictions of African-Americans.
Although her paintings are only of African-Americans, Ms. Sherald hopes her work will inspire and touch all people. In an interview with W Magazine she stated, "I want all types of people to look at my work and see themselves, just like I watch a Reese Witherspoon movie as a black woman and can empathize with her because we have had to internalize whiteness in that way to survive."
Amy Sherald’s painting of Michele Obama will be unveiled at the National Portrait Gallery in Washington D.C. on February 12, alongside Kehinde Wiley’s painting of former President Barack Obama. The Smithsonian is raising $500,000 in private donations to pay for both pieces which will incorporate artist fees as well. Prior to being chosen to paint Michele Obama, Ms. Sherald’s paintings sold between $15,000-$25,000. However, the Obama commission certainly put her in an entirely different stratosphere, and recently three of her paintings that showed at Chicago’s Monique Meloche gallery have been secured for museums at $50,000 apiece.
In May of this year she will have her first solo exhibit at the Contemporary Art Museum in St. Louis.