Leroy Campbell was born into the rich culture of the Gullah
people of Charleston, South Carolina in 1956. His heritage—overflowing with a
vital history and language—would play a significant role in his art in later
years.
 |
| © Leroy Campbell |
In his young years he found that he was subconsciously drawn
to art so he spent a lot of his time ‘doodling’ on desks and clothes. Despite
his ‘doodling,’ Campbell wasn’t particularly driven to create art
professionally. Years after high school he took a job working in a nursing
home. He had moved from South Carolina, and was now living in New York City.
 |
| © Leroy Campbell |
It seems that art was pursuing Campbell (unbeknownst to him),
and wherever he went, it surrounded him. The nursing home, by which he was
employed, had an art gallery, and from time to time, new art would hang there.
On one occasion in 1984, the company held an employee art exhibition. Campbell
says that he placed several pieces in the exhibition, and when he sold them for
$15 each, he was thrilled. After those sales, Campbell started to recognize
his talent, and though he received a high level of support and encouragement from his
co-workers about his art, he was more focused on growing in
the career that he was in. Campbell enrolled in one of the top creative schools in the United
States, Pratt Institute, however, he wasn’t there to study art, he had enrolled
in a Dietary Therapy Program.
 |
| Divine Order © Leroy Campbell |
When he returned from school during a break, he
realized that the company he worked for was on strike, and massive changes were
happening with his job. One of supervisors, who was always exceedingly
supportive of his art, offered him a position as an art teacher at a new community
organization that he was opening. Elated by the offer, and the encouragement of
some of his classmates at Pratt, Campbell was finally motivated enough to
venture out with his art.
 |
| No Man Band © Leroy Campbell |
Some of his classmates offered to sell his works in downtown
Brooklyn, and after some of his first sales—moving pieces for $12 to $15—he
decided that he wanted to be around more artists. He was no longer employed
with the company, and could no longer attend school (because his job was paying
for his education), so he delved more deeply into what he had always loved. He
took his art to West 4th Street where he found new and abundant
clientele...and soon he ended up selling art in The Village. It was there that an unexpected art career began to
grow for Campbell. He connected with other artists, and together they had
shows. He was able to network with art galleries for exhibitions, but it wasn’t until he
connected with a publishing distributor that his name became more public. They highlighted and
marketed his work in different venues, and soon his art began to become
popular in many art communities.
 |
| Release © Leroy Campbell |
Campbell is well known for his silhouetted Mannerist style
images, with elongated necks, legs and arms. He says that his art has,
“Spiritual underpinnings.” His style inspiration came from the notion of using
stick figures, and also from images he saw in the silhouetted introduction of a
television show called, ‘Saints.’ He was
also greatly inspired by the stylized art of Ernie Barnes. Campbell’s early
works were all paint, but his recent works are laden with mixed media elements
like paper, fabric, found objects, and recently old African American Newspapers. His collage inspirations came from two of the
artists who influenced his work the most, Jacob Lawrence and Romare Bearden.
On a trip to Washington D.C., Campbell fell in love with the
art of Jacob Lawrence, and three years later he was able to speak to him briefly
about his life and art when Lawrence spoke at Pratt Institute in Brooklyn.
“Meeting Jacob Lawrence made a profound impact on my life, and helped to
confirm my place in the visual arts community.”
 |
| Self Educate © Leroy Campbell |
 |
| Peace of Mind © Leroy Campbell |
He says that his goal as an artist is to praise the human
spirit, and he wants to encourage people to do things, “in spite of.” Many of
his stylized images reflect the ideologies of the Gullah culture from a
contemporary perspective, and through his most recent series, “The Newspaper
Series,” he deals with some of the history and meaning of newspapers in Gullah
tradition. In Gullah tradition, newspapers play a significant role in
protection from evil and benevolent spirits. Many of his pieces feature imagery
reminiscent of his childhood living in the south, and his adult life in New
York City. His goal is to show the viewer that we are all connected
notwithstanding locale and time.
 |
| Hand in Hand © Leroy Campbell |
Campbell says that he doesn’t believe in the concept of 'starving artist', because there are always ways that an artist can make money,
even if they have to work a formal job in the meantime. He believes
passionately that artists need to create not only for themselves, but for
humanity. Campbell believes that if you
create art solely for money, you can easily loose track of your greater
purpose. He says of his art, “These
images are my way of reexamining some of the moments that have helped to shape
African American culture, and render us whole.”
 |
| Art History © Leroy Campbell |
Leroy Campbell is an internationally recognized visual
artist, who has been collected and printed extensively in America and abroad. When
he is not traveling and speaking, you can find him most often in his studio creating emphatically
and passionately.
To learn more about this artist please visit his website
here, http://www.leroycampbelloriginals.com/
“Whatever you are looking for is looking for you."
- Leroy
Campbell 2012
All images are © copyrighted by the artist unless otherwise noted. Images cannot be reproduced without permission of the artist.
Cultured Artists™ ©2012
