Lisa Whittington
Lisa Whittington
Atlanta, GA, United States
About Lisa Whittington
I am fearless in my artistic journey and I have to be. I embody a sense of creative responsibility to express and document the vibe, the history and the experiences of Black people. I am versatile across mediums, but my love is abstract expressionism because of all the places it can go and how it excites me as an artist. Within my body of work it is not unusual to find figurative work, narratives, as well as non representational abstracts. Much of my work develops intuitively.
I’ve been involved in art all of my life. I’ve also been to museums all around the world observing and studying art. I understand it’s importance and impact on culture and society. I enjoy being an artist and a historian and find purpose in my creative work. My collectors and the museums that have acquired my work tend to feel they are investing in something bigger than either of us can see. Art is not always about how many paintings an artist can sell, but its contribution to the world and the insight of the collector.
My work can be documentary, rhythmic, political, soulful, and even non-objective. My narrative work usually tells the story of Black people in America, or gives pause to my experience coming of age in New York City. Harlem, NY is an ongoing muse and narrator in my work. Recently, an anonymous donor purchased a billboard wall and hired a media company to paint my artwork “A Harlem Story” on a side of a building in Brooklyn as a mural to honor my work.
Please be sure to visit my website lisalovewhittington.com and follow my Instagram @theartistlisalove to stay up to date on my very interesting journey with Art.
I’ve been involved in art all of my life. I’ve also been to museums all around the world observing and studying art. I understand it’s importance and impact on culture and society. I enjoy being an artist and a historian and find purpose in my creative work. My collectors and the museums that have acquired my work tend to feel they are investing in something bigger than either of us can see. Art is not always about how many paintings an artist can sell, but its contribution to the world and the insight of the collector.
My work can be documentary, rhythmic, political, soulful, and even non-objective. My narrative work usually tells the story of Black people in America, or gives pause to my experience coming of age in New York City. Harlem, NY is an ongoing muse and narrator in my work. Recently, an anonymous donor purchased a billboard wall and hired a media company to paint my artwork “A Harlem Story” on a side of a building in Brooklyn as a mural to honor my work.
Please be sure to visit my website lisalovewhittington.com and follow my Instagram @theartistlisalove to stay up to date on my very interesting journey with Art.
Education
University of Georgia, 2014 Doctor of Art Education
University of West Georgia, 1997 Masters of Art Ed
Long Island University/CW Post, 1987 BFA/Graphic Arts
University of West Georgia, 1997 Masters of Art Ed
Long Island University/CW Post, 1987 BFA/Graphic Arts
Events
Hambidge Artist Residency, May-June 2021
Georgia Council of the Arts Fellow 2021
University of Georgia, Dr. Lisa Whittington Speaks “How Emmett Till Changed the Art World,” Feb. 22, 2020, Athens GA
Race, Rights, and Representation: An Artist to Artist Discussion, Gallery 72, Atlanta, GAMarch 2018
An Evening in the Reece Museum with an Emmett Till Painting, Dec. 6, 2017, Reece Museum, TN
Speaker, “What Does Art Want With You?” TEDX Deer Park, Long Island NY, “ Feb. 2017
Georgia Council of the Arts Fellow 2021
University of Georgia, Dr. Lisa Whittington Speaks “How Emmett Till Changed the Art World,” Feb. 22, 2020, Athens GA
Race, Rights, and Representation: An Artist to Artist Discussion, Gallery 72, Atlanta, GAMarch 2018
An Evening in the Reece Museum with an Emmett Till Painting, Dec. 6, 2017, Reece Museum, TN
Speaker, “What Does Art Want With You?” TEDX Deer Park, Long Island NY, “ Feb. 2017
Exhibitions
REECE MUSEUM (Permanent collections. Acquisition) "They Know Me Not", 2021
CAMP GALLERY (The Contemporary Art Modern Project) Art From Experience Based Identity. (15 works of art) OVR Dec. 3, 2020 - March, 2021
NAACP/LDF US ELECTION 2020 Commission.
VoteInTheirHonor.com. 2020 National Political Campaign Posters Designer (Breonna Taylor and
Terence Crutcher)
STRAND THEATER BALTIMORE ‘Brown Sugar Bakeoff” finalist. Wrote a play entitled “Black in the Box.” (About being a Black female artist in America)
GREAT GUNS ADVERTISING AGENCY, London England. Commissioned artist
REECE MUSEUM “Exhibition for Social & Political Art (Fletcher Exhibition) (Juried) Sept 30 - December 11
AUGUSTA SAVAGE GALLERY“Breathing While Black” (Juried) Sept. 1 - November 30, 2020 (Due to Covid 19 the exhibition will be held online)
Atlanta Airport Exhibition T-Gate (Winner-Best in Show) through June 2020
PERMANENT INSTALLATION “The Eva Davis Way” (Triptych), Mixed media 108” x 36 “ Charles Drew Charter lobby, East Atlanta, February, 2020
PERMANENT INSTALLATION “Blood, Sweat, and Brilliance” (6 Panel Polyptych), Mixed media, 216” x 72” Charles Drew Charter lobby, East Atlanta, February, 2020
MISSISSIPPI CIVIL RIGHTS MUSEUM (Acquisition) (3 Artworks acquired) 2019
HARTSFIELD JACKSON ATLANT AIRPORT T-Gate (Winner-Best in Show) November 2019 through June 2020
SYNCHRONICITY THEATRE presents The Unbound Trilogy, (Unbound is a performance showcase that tells 3 African American slice of life stories through art of Lisa Whittington, September 2019
NEW ORLEANS ART ASSOCIATION NATIONAL EXHIBITION (Juried) New Orleans, LA, August 2019
MARIETTA/COBB MUSEUM OF ART "Metro Montage" (Juried). Marietta, GA July 7 - Sept 4, 2018
NODA Cultural Center Invitational / 26 pieces) "Art, Women, Power." Charlotte, NC January 14- May 1, 2018
Reece Museum "Fletcher Exhibit," (Juried) Johnson City, TN October-December 2017
STEFFEN THOMAS MUSEUM, (Invitational) "Steffen Thomas: A Legacy in Atlanta" August 24 - October 30, 2017
GALLERY 72 and the Mayor's Office of Cultural Affairs (Invitational) "Steffen Thomas: A Legacy in Atlanta" June 9 - August 1, 2017
New Orleans Art Association National Exhibition, (Juried) New Orleans, LA March 2017
Reece Museum "Fletcher Exhibition for Socially and Politically Engaged Art (Juried) (3 pieces selected)," Johnson City, TN, Oct-Dec 2016
Marietta Cobb Museum of Art Metro Montage Juried Exhibition, Marietta, GA June –Sept 2016
Limelight Gallery, Atlanta, GA, June – July 2016
ONSITE GALLERY BROOKLYN, “Contemporary Faces”, Brooklyn, NY, June 2015
Saint Leo University, Black History Month Show, February 2013
CAMP GALLERY (The Contemporary Art Modern Project) Art From Experience Based Identity. (15 works of art) OVR Dec. 3, 2020 - March, 2021
NAACP/LDF US ELECTION 2020 Commission.
VoteInTheirHonor.com. 2020 National Political Campaign Posters Designer (Breonna Taylor and
Terence Crutcher)
STRAND THEATER BALTIMORE ‘Brown Sugar Bakeoff” finalist. Wrote a play entitled “Black in the Box.” (About being a Black female artist in America)
GREAT GUNS ADVERTISING AGENCY, London England. Commissioned artist
REECE MUSEUM “Exhibition for Social & Political Art (Fletcher Exhibition) (Juried) Sept 30 - December 11
AUGUSTA SAVAGE GALLERY“Breathing While Black” (Juried) Sept. 1 - November 30, 2020 (Due to Covid 19 the exhibition will be held online)
Atlanta Airport Exhibition T-Gate (Winner-Best in Show) through June 2020
PERMANENT INSTALLATION “The Eva Davis Way” (Triptych), Mixed media 108” x 36 “ Charles Drew Charter lobby, East Atlanta, February, 2020
PERMANENT INSTALLATION “Blood, Sweat, and Brilliance” (6 Panel Polyptych), Mixed media, 216” x 72” Charles Drew Charter lobby, East Atlanta, February, 2020
MISSISSIPPI CIVIL RIGHTS MUSEUM (Acquisition) (3 Artworks acquired) 2019
HARTSFIELD JACKSON ATLANT AIRPORT T-Gate (Winner-Best in Show) November 2019 through June 2020
SYNCHRONICITY THEATRE presents The Unbound Trilogy, (Unbound is a performance showcase that tells 3 African American slice of life stories through art of Lisa Whittington, September 2019
NEW ORLEANS ART ASSOCIATION NATIONAL EXHIBITION (Juried) New Orleans, LA, August 2019
MARIETTA/COBB MUSEUM OF ART "Metro Montage" (Juried). Marietta, GA July 7 - Sept 4, 2018
NODA Cultural Center Invitational / 26 pieces) "Art, Women, Power." Charlotte, NC January 14- May 1, 2018
Reece Museum "Fletcher Exhibit," (Juried) Johnson City, TN October-December 2017
STEFFEN THOMAS MUSEUM, (Invitational) "Steffen Thomas: A Legacy in Atlanta" August 24 - October 30, 2017
GALLERY 72 and the Mayor's Office of Cultural Affairs (Invitational) "Steffen Thomas: A Legacy in Atlanta" June 9 - August 1, 2017
New Orleans Art Association National Exhibition, (Juried) New Orleans, LA March 2017
Reece Museum "Fletcher Exhibition for Socially and Politically Engaged Art (Juried) (3 pieces selected)," Johnson City, TN, Oct-Dec 2016
Marietta Cobb Museum of Art Metro Montage Juried Exhibition, Marietta, GA June –Sept 2016
Limelight Gallery, Atlanta, GA, June – July 2016
ONSITE GALLERY BROOKLYN, “Contemporary Faces”, Brooklyn, NY, June 2015
Saint Leo University, Black History Month Show, February 2013
