MEET INCREDIBLE ARTISTS
BRYANTLamont
Born and raised on the south side of Chicago. Works from Chicago and Nashville. Social justice centered, Bryant Lamont's work examines the systems of racism in America. Most recent bodies of work viscerally examine the staggering incarceration of Black men. Growing up in the ‘80s he had an innate passion for architecture and design; but had no formal mentorship in the arts. A photography major at Columbia College (Chicago) lead him through the world of corporate graphic design and printing; wedding photography and ultimately his first gallery effort in 2000 ~ SteeleLife. And more recently, ArtRevolution in Chicago and Nashville.When asked about style, “I don’t have a style.” He is driven to create with pure autonomy regardless of social consequence, fear of reprisal, judgement or lack of retail sales. “I have to say what I need to say. The way I choose to say it.” An avid researcher of national policies and social constructs that support systems of injustice, his works are grand in scale using mixed media to provoke the viewer to look inwardly at their own bondage to and/or participation in systemic racism and economic inequality.
Susan Holley-Williams
Susan Holley-Williams is a talented sculptor based in both Little Rock, Arkansas and Chicago, Illinois. She believed herself to be an artist when her third-grade classmates frequently asked her to assist them with drawing projects. She was introduced to clay and sculpture in the ninth grade where she had a very supportive and encouraging art teacher, Mrs. Joy Hudson.
Holley-Williams received a bachelor’s of arts degree in Housing and Interior Design from the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville. That degree choice came at the advice of an advisor during her freshman year. “Although I chose Interior Design, I never could walk away from art,” she said. “It was always my passion and sculpture is where I expressed myself best.”
After college Holley-Williams built a successful interior design business where she showcased both her creativity and business acumen. She has designed homes and offices for prominent figures, including former President William J. Clinton.
Fate and passion led Holley-Williams back to art, and she taught art for the Little Rock School District, including at the historic Central High School.
She dedicates a large portion of her time to sculpting. Holley-Williams often works in her home studio with clay and wax, creating sculptures that are primarily sought after by private collectors, galleries, museums, and institutions.
Stuart Yankell
Stuart Yankell’s work celebrates life and the common fabric of humanity. Combining abstraction with a kinetic approach rooted in classical lighting and form, he embraces historical convention while seeking to expand the language of art. For more than four decades, Yankell has painted a multitude of musical and dance forms, as well as figurative themes based on a broad range of universal settings.
Yankell was trained in Philadelphia at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, the University of Pennsylvania and the Frudakis Sculpture Academy. He also studied in Italy at Temple University, and has taught painting and art history at the university level over the course of his career. Yankell is also known for his portraiture, and has been commissioned to paint a variety of business, political and academic figures for public and corporate collections, as well as children and families.
Recent collectors in the entertainment industry include Dave Matthews, Carlos Santana, Ravi Coltrane, Natalie Merchant and both Wynton and Branford Marsalis. Stuart Yankell’s work has earned place in the vanguard of contemporary figurative painting and has been displayed in museums and galleries throughout the world.
nd ultimately his first gallery effort in 2000 ~ SteeleLife. And more recently, ArtRevolution in Chicago and Nashville.When asked about style, “I don’t have a style.” He is driven to create with pure autonomy regardless of social consequence, fear of reprisal, judgement or lack of retail sales. “I have to say what I need to say. The way I choose to say it.” An avid researcher of national policies and social constructs that support systems of injustice, his works are grand in scale using mixed media to provoke the viewer to look inwardly at their own bondage to and/or participation in systemic racism and economic inequality.
D. Lammie-Hanson
D. Lammie-Hanson, a self-taught contemporary artist from Harlem, now based in Chicago, specializes in large metalpoint drawings that capture the human spirit. In 2017, during a self-directed residency in Barcelona, she honed her skills in the metalpoint technique, using thin metal wires on dark surfaces, a method dating back to the Renaissance.
One of her notable works from this period, "A Portrait of a Beautiful Black Man," was exhibited in the “Louisiana Contemporary” exhibition at the Ogden Museum of Southern Art in New Orleans.
Lammie-Hanson was selected to exhibit at the “Personal Structures” exhibit during the 60th Venice Biennale in Italy with Knowhere Art Gallery. Her second metalpoint series, "Indigo Seven: Gilded Agility," featuring goldpoints of ballet dancers on indigo substrates, will debut at the International Museum of Surgical Science in Chicago in the summer of 2024.
Gedion Nyanhongo
In these unusual times, viewing Gedion Nyanhongo’s soulful sculpture is a soothing relief.
Focusing not on the craziness of the outside world, but on the most important issues in life -
love, family and beauty.
In his deceptively simple and flowing work, one gains a real insight into his heritage, the Shona
people of Zimbabwe, Africa and its rich culture.
“My sculptures focus on the things that collectively make up the bigger picture – life, love, and
the sensations that define us all.”
Gedion Nyanhongo was born into an artistic family in Nyanga, Zimbabwe, Africa.
He was influenced from a very young age by his father, Claud Nyanhongo, a prominent artist
among the "first generation" sculptors, the pioneers of the Shona Stone Sculpture Movement (a
style of sculpture unique to Zimbabwe) that began in the late 1950s.
"I used to watch my father sculpt when I grew up, and although I was young, I remember loving
it and knowing that sculpting was what I wanted to do."
Gedion embarked on a solo career in 1988, where his vision and technical skills have earned
him international recognition as a sculptor of excellence.
Over the years Gedion has become even more discerning in creating sculptures that advance
the Movement into the 21st century, whilst maintaining a bridge reaching back to the rich stories
and culture of his ancestors.
Gedion lives in Phoenix, Arizona and Fostoria, Ohio, where he has studios in both cities.
