Draft:Deonna Craig
Deonna Craig | |
|---|---|
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| Born | |
| Alma mater | Cathedral High School and DePauw University |
| Notable work | Black Lives Matter street mural and "White Out" |
| Website | https://www.deonnacraigart.com/ |
Deonna Craig is an American abstract visual artist and art instructor who is based in Indianapolis, Indiana. Craig's art is largely focused on activism, history, dreams, and her own travels. She is primarily known for her contribution to the Black Lives Matter street mural on Indiana Avenue, created by the Eighteen Collective of which Craig is the president. The artist has had her featured in numerous notable institutions such as the Indianapolis Museum of Art (Newfields), the Indianapolis Children's Museum, the Indiana State Museum, the Indianapolis International Airport, and the Indianapolis Art Center.[1] Craig has also held the titles of Virtual Resident Artist at the Madam Walker Legacy Center from 2020 to 2021 and Visiting Artist at the Indianapolis Children’s Museum from 2021 to 2022. Art by Deonna Craig is Craig's art company in which she sells many of her original abstract paintings and prints.
Career
[edit]Before deciding upon an artistic career path, Craig attended DePauw University where she graduated in 2004 with a degree in Communication and Sociology.[2][3] Planning to have a career in either journalism or television, Craig jumped into working as a Production Assistant for the Jerry Springer Show right out of college. After leaving the Jerry Springer Show, Craig dove into the field of Corporate American insurance working as a fraud investigator. For fifteen years she stayed in this line of work, during which she was invited by her mom to a wine and canvas activity in order to "blow off steam."[3][4] Though Craig had never pick up a paint brush prior to this activity, the instructor encouraged her to pursue the arts. Craig followed the instructor's advice, buying painting supplies the next day and creating her very first original painting for which she found much encouragement for online in the form of buyers.[5][6] In the beginning, Craig attempted to balance both her day job in insurance and her passion for art until her work became a hindrance to the future of her artistic career. In 2018, the up incoming artist was offered the chance to participate in the NBA All-Star weekend in Los Angelos, but her insurance job would have denied her the opportunity. Craig made the choice to walk away from Cooperate America in order to become a full-time artist.[7]
In 2020, Craig's artistic inspiration pivoted to being centered around social justice and activism due to the public discourse going on at the time.[6] That summer Deonna Craig and seventeen other artists got together to create the Black Lives Matter mural on Indiana Avenue, in which Craig was designated to depict the letter "V".[8] For her letter, Craig mapped a bird's eye view of Indianapolis, writing out the names of local Black Americans who had been killed by IMPD. She placed these names on the roads of the map in order to highlight how these people were members of the community that the viewer could have passed on the street.[5] The Eighteen artists who created this mural later became established as the Eighteen Art Collective in July of 2021, electing Craig as their first president.[8] Craig has had many of her pieces featured in galleries alongside the Collective, including in the exhibit "365+" presented by the Indianapolis Art Center[8], the "We. The Culture" exhibit at Newfields[9], and "The Art of Protest" exhibit at The Children's Museum of Indianapolis[10].
In October of 2022,[11] Deonna Craig had a solo exhibit presented by the Madam Walker Legacy Center entitled "COMPENDIUM" by the artist. "COMPENDIUM" is a collection of paintings by Craig that were inspired by ancient art and put together in a gallery for the purpose of bringing attention to the past's effects on modern people and concepts.[12] The last painting in the exhibit, "ANCESTOR SIMULATION," depicts
"Through the Stargate" dream journal
"Existence (Coordinate of Life)" was the painting that Craig submitted to be a part of Newfield's year-long "We. The Culture" exhibit that was up from 2022 to 2023. The artist has described this painting as a connection between the past and the present art worlds. With this piece she hoped to encourage audiences to think about art as a lens with which they are able to understand ancient and present-day artists alike.[4]
(COMPENDIUM, Creative Renewal Arts Fellowship, "white out", children's museum artist in residence, Indianapolis airport, currartor for ganggang and nba, gallery list)
References
[edit]- ^ Indianapolis, Dress for Success (2022-07-06). "Stepping Out In Style Featured Artist: Deonna Craig". indydfs.org. Retrieved 2024-10-04.
- ^ "Reclaiming the Space--Revisited". Indianapolis City Market. 2021-12-01. Retrieved 2024-10-04.
- ^ a b Artrageous with Nate (2023-01-17). The Path to Creativity Is Not Predictable | How To Be a Successful Black Artist!. Retrieved 2024-10-04 – via YouTube.
- ^ a b Sogard, Emily (2022-11-28). "Deonna Craig: Local Legend". Newfields. Retrieved 2024-10-04.
- ^ a b The Children's Museum of Indianapolis (2021-08-05). Art of Protest Mural Artist - Deonna Craig. Retrieved 2024-10-04 – via YouTube.
- ^ a b The Indianapolis Public Library (2021-01-31). Artist Deonna Craig. Retrieved 2024-10-07 – via YouTube.
- ^ Studdard, Tevin (2021-08-09). "Deonna Craig – Journey of Visual Artist Deonna Craig". WISH TV. Retrieved 2024-10-04.
- ^ a b c Griffin, Nicole (2021-08-07). "Indianapolis Black Lives Matter mural artists are now part of the 18 Art Collective". WRTV. Retrieved 2024-10-07.
- ^ Bongiovanni, Domenica (2022-09-23). "'We. The Culture': Inside the yearslong wait for Newfields show on Black artist collective". The Indianapolis Star. Retrieved 2024-10-07.
- ^ "Indianapolis' Black Lives Matter: The Art of Protest coming to Children's Museum". wthr.com. 2021-08-03. Retrieved 2024-10-07.
- ^ "Madam Walker Legacy Center". www.facebook.com. 2022-10-19. Retrieved 2024-10-09.
- ^ Refresherpoint (2023-01-20). Deonna Craig: COMPENDIUM, Life In Indianapolis, and Ancient Art | Fresh Interviews Episode 1. Retrieved 2024-10-09 – via YouTube.