Janiva Ellis (born 1987) is an American painter based in Brooklyn, NY and Los Angeles, CA.[1] Ellis often makes figurative paintings that explore the African-American female experience.[2]
Janiva Ellis | |
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Born | 1987 |
Nationality | American |
Education | California College of the Arts |
Known for | Painter |
Born in Oakland, California, Ellis moved to Hawaii at the age of 7, moving between the islands of Kauai and Oahu.[3] Raised solely by her white mother, in a state with a small black population, Ellis uses her art practice to investigate and examine the complex racial dynamic of her upbringing.[3] Ellis studied painting at California College of the Arts in San Francisco, graduating in 2012.[3]
Ellis describes her paintings as “not only an attempt to communicate to nonblack women my experience, but also to call to other black women, ‘Do you feel this, too?’”[2] Critics have commended Ellis for the psychoanalytic tension in her paintings.[4] Occasionally, the paintings incorporate religious symbology; such as lambs or angels, referencing the canon of religious painting.[4] In 2017, Ellis presented "Lick Shot" at 47 Canal, her first solo show in New York City.[5] In 2018, Ellis participated in the New Museum Triennial - “Songs for Sabotage.”[4] Ellis was included in the 2019 Whitney Biennial curated by Rujeko Hockley and Jane Panetta.[1]
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Art research institutes |