Monotone relief print celebrating black beauty and its connection with nature and afro-caribbean roots. This print is perfect for an office space, bedroom, restaurant or anywhere that black beauty can be amplified, appreciated and celebrated.
The island of Trinidad and Tobago, was one of the main factors that has molded the West Indian artist, Nneka Jones into the person she is today. Her astounding love for color and special attention to detail, as influenced by her culture, have always been prominent throughout her artistic journey. The artist was never one to accept mediocrity, not only in art, but also in her everyday life and had always been willing to take on a challenge. This led her to take the risk of leaving behind her family and friends to travel the world in pursuit of both sharing and gaining versatile experiences that would enhance her artistry.
The twenty-three-year old artist who graduated in May 2020 with a Bachelor of Fine Arts from the University of Tampa and a Marketing minor, considers herself an activist artist who uses contemporary portraiture and symbolism to bring awareness to social injustices and inequalities. Her most recent work highlights sexual abuse, human trafficking, colorism, and black identity. She has also expanded to environmental activism and uses her artwork to emphasize the importance of addressing these social, political and environmental injustices that are overlooked in everyday life, to move her audience to make a change.
After entering and being accepted into her first public art show, The Gasparilla Festival of Arts (GFA 2019), Jones was awarded the William O'Dowd Memorial Emerging Artist Award and featured in two articles by the Tampa Bay Times. She entered again in 2020 and placed 3rd out of 233 artists, winning the Roddy Brownlee Reed, Award of Artistic Excellence. Jones’ most recent achievements include a TIME magazine commission to produce the hand embroidered flag that appears on the cover of the August 31st/ September 7th issue 2020 and a commission from the Washington Post to capture the history made by Vice President Elect Kamala Harris. Jones continued to explore public art after being invited as a mural artist to the SHINE Mural Festival in St. Petersburg with 2020’s festival focused on #paintingforapurpose. The artist is now speaking at events like Adobe MAX, sharing her journey and emphasizing the importance of art as a vehicle for activism.
She quotes, “There is the artwork. The story behind the artwork and the story that the artwork tells.” She believes that her artistic journey has only just begun and she is eager to explore her creative purpose in life, to reach her ultimate goal of being an internationally renowned activist artist.