When Amy Sherald agreed to paint Michelle Obama's official portrait for the National Portrait Gallery in 2018, she had spent her thirties waiting tables, painting on the side, and recovering from a heart condition that had required a transplant in 2012. The portrait, unveiled alongside Kehinde Wiley's image of Barack Obama, made them the first African American[1] artists to receive that commission in the gallery's history.
Key facts
- Born
- 1973, American[1]
- Movement
- [1]
- Works held in
- 2 museums
- Wikipedia
- View article
Biography
Born in Columbus, Georgia, in 1973[1], Sherald studied painting at Clark Atlanta University before completing an MFA at the Maryland Institute College of Art in 2004, working under the Norwegian painter Odd Nerdrum and the abstract expressionist Grace Hartigan. The technical signature she arrived at is precise and deliberate: since 2012 she has rendered all skin in grisaille, removing flesh tones entirely. The grey surfaces, placed against saturated colour in clothing and backgrounds, shift focus from racial categorisation to individual presence and stillness.
Her subjects are Black Americans photographed in everyday situations and then painted with the calm authority of a tradition she is explicitly claiming. The Bathers (2015) sold at auction in 2020 for $4.265 million, against an estimate of $200,000. Her 2020 portrait of Breonna Taylor entered the collections of the Smithsonian's National Museum of African American[1] History and Culture and the Speed Art Museum in Louisville.
The Outwin Boochever Portrait Competition Prize at the National Portrait Gallery in 2016 made her the first woman and the first African American[1] to win the award. Her retrospective American Sublime has toured major American institutions to record attendance. She lives and works in Baltimore.
Timeline
- 1973Born in Columbus, Georgia.
- 2004Completed an MFA at the Maryland Institute College of Art, studying under Odd Nerdrum and Grace Hartigan.
- 2012Underwent a heart transplant.
- 2012Began rendering all skin in grisaille in her paintings.
- 2015Painted "The Bathers".
- 2016Won the Outwin Boochever Portrait Competition Prize at the National Portrait Gallery, the first woman and African American to win the award.
- 2018Painted Michelle Obama's official portrait for the National Portrait Gallery.
- 2020Her painting "The Bathers" (2015) sold at auction for $4.265 million.
- 2020Her portrait of Breonna Taylor entered the collections of the Smithsonian's National Museum of African American History and Culture and the Speed Art Museum in Louisville.
Related Artists
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Amy Sherald known for?
Amy Sherald is known for depicting moments that are devoid of the stereotypical narrative so often imposed on the Black figure in images. Her work has reminded her that she does what she does because her grandmother had never seen a portrait of a Black person in a gallery before.Who was Amy Sherald?
Amy Sherald is a painter who captures everyday joy in her images of Black Americans. She shares motifs with Tyler Mitchell, such as outdoor space and fashionable friends. Her colourful paintings with pastel palettes show Black people enjoying American[1] moments, with their skin painted in grayscale.What was Amy Sherald's art style?
Amy Sherald's art style involves colourful paintings with pastel palettes showing Black people enjoying American[1] moments. A key element of her style is rendering skin in grayscale, while the backgrounds and clothing are rendered with warmth.When was Amy Sherald born?
Amy Sherald was born in 1973[1].
Sources
Editorial draws on the following primary and tertiary references for Amy Sherald.
- [1] wikipedia Wikipedia: Amy Sherald Used for: biography, birth dates, death dates, identifiers, movement attribution, nationality.
- [2] book Dorling Kindersley, Artists: Inspiring Stories of the World's Most Creative Minds Used for: biography, stylistic analysis.
- [3] book downmagaz.net, downmagaz.net Used for: biography.
- [4] book https://downmagaz.net, https://downmagaz.net Used for: biography, stylistic analysis.
Editorial overseen by Solis Prints. Sources verified 2026-05-24. Click a source for details, or hover over [N] in the page above to preview.
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