#6 – How Do Family Photos Become Museum Paintings? | Jerrell Gibbs

The Truth In This Art is an interview series featuring artists, entrepreneurs and tastemakers in & around Baltimore.

Jerrell Gibbs’ work is often sourced from albums he finds of Black American families in the 70’s-90’s that capture moments of intimacy, leisure and elegance. Gibbs highlights subtle adornments found in these domestic spaces, which represent cultural symbols in an era where Black folks created beauty with whatever means they had. He leans into a method of painting that supports the duality of Black people who may not have resources, and yet are active in creating world-renowned culture and style that are both beautiful and classic. In Gibbs’ work, he asks the viewer to come closer to witness imperfection in brushstroke and color, as well as other artistic choices that seem misaligned. This contrasts to the illusion of a cohesive image that he creates from afar. Gibbs celebrates this dichotomy because it portrays chance as integral to the process of creation, a principle found in the masters of Impressionism, Abstract Expressionism, Divisionism and the abstract movement. Gibbs graduated with an MFA from the Maryland Institute College of Art, Baltimore, MD in 2020. His work is in the permanent collection of the Columbus Museum of Art, CC Foundation, X Museum, Baltimore Museum of Art, and the Los Angeles Museum of Art. Gibbs is represented by Mariane Ibrahim Gallery.