Kerry James Marshall

(American, born 1955)

Kerry James Marshall is a contemporary painter whose work explores the complex effects of the Civil Rights movement on the everyday life on African Americans. Through narrative scenes that draw both from history and the artist’s own life, Marshall delves into obscure moments and objects important to contemporary and past black culture. His work is likewise concerned with the tradition of Western painting, and the notion of mastery, authorship, and the erasure of black bodies throughout art history. Like Kara Walker, Marshall often exaggerates the color of the people in his work making them as black as the pigment will allow, drawing more attention to the surrounding color and content of his paintings. Born on October 17, 1955 in Birmingham, AL, he grew up in the Watts neighborhood of South Central Los Angeles, going on to study at the Otis College of Art and Design. “You can’t be born in Birmingham, Alabama in 1955 and grow up in South Central near the Black Panthers headquarters, and not feel like you’ve got some kind of social responsibility,” the artist has said of his upbringing. Marshall has shown with David Zwirner Gallery in New York, and his works are held in the collections of the Art Institute of Chicago, The Museum of Modern Art in New York, the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, the National Gallery of Art in Washington D.C., and the Walker Art Center in Minneapolis among others. In 2016, his work was the subject of a major retrospective titled “Mastry” that would travel to the MCA Chicago, MOCA, and The Metropolitan Museum of Art to widespread critical acclaim. In 2018, Marshall's Past Times (1997) sold for $21.1 million at auction, at the time marking the highest price ever paid at auction for a work by a living African American artist. Marshall lives and works in Chicago, IL.

Kerry James Marshall Artworks

Kerry James Marshall (176 results)
Keeping the Culture., 2011

Kerry James Marshall

Keeping the Culture., 2011

Sale Date: March 31, 2022

Auction Closed

Brownie., 1995

Kerry James Marshall

Brownie., 1995

Sale Date: March 31, 2022

Auction Closed

Souvenir 1

After Kerry James Marshall

Souvenir 1" Pillow Sham, 2017

Sale Date: March 16, 2022

Auction Closed

Satisfied Man, 2015

Kerry James Marshall

Satisfied Man, 2015

Sale Date: January 19, 2022

Auction Closed

May 15, 2001., 2001

Kerry James Marshall

May 15, 2001., 2001

Sale Date: November 16, 2021

Auction Closed

Souvenir I Pillow Sham, 2017

Kerry James Marshall

Souvenir I Pillow Sham, 2017

Sale Date: October 29, 2021

Auction Closed

Memento (T. 96-367), 1997

Kerry James Marshall

Memento (T. 96-367), 1997

Sale Date: October 21, 2021

Auction Closed

MAY 15, 2001, 2003

Kerry James Marshall

MAY 15, 2001, 2003

Sale Date: October 19, 2021

Auction Closed

Keeping the Culture, 2011

Kerry James Marshall

Keeping the Culture, 2011

Sale Date: October 7, 2021

Auction Closed

Memento (T: 96-367), 1997, 1997

Kerry James Marshall

Memento (T: 96-367), 1997, 1997

Sale Date: October 23, 2021

Auction Closed

Me, 2012

Kerry James Marshall

Me, 2012

Sale Date: September 29, 2021

Auction Closed

Souvenir I, 2017

Kerry James Marshall

Souvenir I, 2017

Sale Date: September 15, 2021

Auction Closed

Brownie, 1995

Kerry James Marshall

Brownie, 1995

Sale Date: May 19, 2021

Auction Closed

Untitled (Stono Drawing), 2012

Kerry James Marshall

Untitled (Stono Drawing), 2012

Sale Date: May 12, 2021

Auction Closed

Nat-Shango (Thunder), 1991

Kerry James Marshall

Nat-Shango (Thunder), 1991

Sale Date: May 11, 2021

Auction Closed

Brownie, 1995

Kerry James Marshall

Brownie, 1995

Sale Date: April 22, 2021

Auction Closed

Eschu - Crossroads, 1987–1988

Kerry James Marshall

Eschu - Crossroads, 1987–1988

Sale Date: April 20, 2021

Auction Closed

Keeping the Culture., 2011

Kerry James Marshall

Keeping the Culture., 2011

Sale Date: December 10, 2020

Auction Closed

Vignette (Wishing Well)., 2010

Kerry James Marshall

Vignette (Wishing Well)., 2010

Sale Date: December 10, 2020

Auction Closed

Three issues of Rythm Mastr., 1999–2000

Kerry James Marshall

Three issues of Rythm Mastr., 1999–2000

Sale Date: December 10, 2020

Auction Closed

Scout 1-6, 2017

Kerry James Marshall

Scout 1-6, 2017

Sale Date: February 4, 2021

Auction Closed

Untitled (MAN), 2017

Kerry James Marshall

Untitled (MAN), 2017

Sale Date: January 21, 2021

Auction Closed

May 15, 2001, 2003

Kerry James Marshall

May 15, 2001, 2003

Sale Date: November 14, 2020

Auction Closed

UNTITLED (BLOT), 2015

Kerry James Marshall

UNTITLED (BLOT), 2015

Sale Date: October 28, 2020

Auction Closed