Ten Famous Black Artists & Painters Every Kid Should Know (2024)

Kehinde Wiley (1977) made a name for himself for his naturalistic, brightly colored portraits of young black men, often with dramatic flowery backgrounds. Wiley’s portraits are an essential document of the power, fashion, versatility and beauty of the black community.

William H. Johnson (1901-1970) is regardedas one of the most progressive painters of his timeand as one of the South’s most revered twentieth-century artists. Children can learn through a tutorial how to draw in his distinctive style.

Jacob Lawrence (1917-2000) Lawrence wasone of the first African American artists to gain broad recognition within the segregated art world of the 1940s, and he is renowned for his serialized projects, including “The Migration of the Negro” and “War Series”, among other works.

Amanda Gorman (1998) is an American poet and activist known for works that address Black identity, feminism, marginalization, and climate change. She gained international fame when she read her poem “The Hill We Climb” at the 2021 inauguration of U.S. President Joe Biden.

Jean-Michel Basquiat (1960-1988) was an Puerto Rican/Haitian American artist who rose to success during the 1980s. He was one of the first African American artists to reach international stature and wealth in the art world, and had a short but impactful career.

Bernard Hayes (1951) was born in Jamaica but finished his studies in the U.S. His works have been featured in numerous television and film productions, and collected internationally. With compositions that boast majestic color and bold creativity, his artwork is known for stirring the heart, mind and soul.

Faith Ringgold (1930) is an American painter, painting on different materials including fabric, a published author, mixed media sculptor, performance artist, and intersectional activist. She is best known for herpainted story quilts– art that combines painting, quilted fabric and storytelling.

Thequilts of Gee’s Bendarecreated by a group of women and their ancestors who live or have lived in the isolatedAfrican-Americanhamlet ofGee’s Bend, Alabamaalong theAlabama River. The quilts of Gee’s Bend are among the most important African-American visual and cultural contributions to the history of art within the United States.

Horace Pippin (1888-1946) was an American folk painter known forhis depictions of African American life and of the horrors of war. He was a self-taught African American painter who attracted attention amid the national fascination with “folk,” “primitive,” and “naïve” art in the late 1930s and 1940s.