Kerry James Marshall
Distinguished Visiting Painting Fellow
Wednesday, 26 September 2007 at 7:30pm

Download the video podcast Of Marshall's talk (1hr, 35min.) either in a browser window here or via iTunes here.

Through a variety of media, Kerry James Marshall addresses the social and political implications of African American popular culture. Born in Birmingham, Alabama, and raised in South Central Los Angeles, Marshall utilizes imagery associated with these historic sites of activism—in particular, from the Civil Rights movement and the Watts Riots. He depicts middle-class living rooms, suburban backyards, ordinary folk, and political icons. His ongoing comic strip, Rythm Mastr, follows the adventures of an inner-city African American superhero. Marshall’s work has been exhibited at the 2003 Venice Biennale; the 1999–2000 Carnegie International; the 1997 Whitney Biennial; and Documenta X and XII in Kassel. In 1998, Marshall’s work was the subject of a major exhibition, which traveled to such venues as the Brooklyn Museum of Art; SFMoMA; and the Institute for Contemporary Art in Boston. He received a MacArthur Fellowship in 1997. He teaches at the School of Art and Design at the University of Illinois-Chicago.