Art Collection
The Clark family began collecting art more than ten years ago, centering the collection on the work of emerging Black artists in North America and beyond. Collecting art from emerging artists is a form of supporting and advancing the development of the artists’ careers. Just as significant is the empowerment this form of support offers to contemporary social and cultural movements, of which the art is often a part, being that the work is usually a reflection of what is happening in the present moment.
Thematically much of the collection speaks to issues of representation and collective memory, confronting systems of power and recorded history which have constructed versions of race, ancestry, migration, gender, sexuality, and class that warrant contestation. Many of the artists engage their work as visual and social activism, aiming to provoke viewers into civic participation, if not full-blown activism. Throughout the Clark Collection, history, politics, identity, and popular culture are disrupted by artists who create with eclectic materials in mediums spanning the visual arts.
The majority of the Clark Collection is on display in the Clarks’ private residences, with the exception of a few pieces—most notably the portraits of President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama, which are on display in the National Portrait Gallery. These portraits were painted by Kehinde Wiley and Amy Sherald, respectively.

November’s Artist of the Month: Vaughn Spann
Vaughn Spann is one of the most talented artists working today, and he already is off to a great start in his artistic career despite being so young. His current work centers around paintings that seek to explore abstraction, figuration, and formalism in new ways and from different perspectives, and he’s currently been focusing on portraiture and mixed-material abstractions that have enchanted and inspired viewers. Vaughn was born in Florida in 1992 and grew up in Orange, New Jersey. He now lives and works in nearby Newark, and he received his Bachelors of Fine Arts degree from Rutgers...
November’s Artist of the Month: Vaughn Spann
Vaughn Spann is one of the most talented artists working today, and he already is off to a great start in his artistic career despite being so young. His current work centers around paintings that seek to explore abstraction, figuration, and formalism in new ways and...
October’s Featured Artist: McArthur Binion
So many people have become captivated by the minimalist abstract paintings of McArthur Binion, but he is also an inspiration for me and countless others with the ways he’s dedicated to serving as an educator and mentor and seeks to lift up the next generation of Black...
July’s Artist of the Month: Kehinde Wiley
This month’s featured artist is one whose paintings and growing body of work have become instantly recognizable to so many of us who are passionate about the arts. Kehinde Wiley has an incredible talent for reinterpreting past artistic styles and traditions, making...
June’s Featured Artist: Nathaniel Mary Quinn
Nathaniel Mary Quinn is an artist whose incredible work stays with you. Known for his captivating collage-like portraits, Quinn has created a distinct style that is a unique blend between mixed media drawings and paintings of fragmented figures that play with the...
Bisa Butler: Portraits at the Art Institute of Chicago
The Princess, 2018 Bisa Butler. Art has a remarkable ability to transcend social and cultural boundaries, and it’s one of the things that I have always loved to learn more about. It’s one of the reasons that I dedicate my time to the Art Institute of Chicago’s Art...
April’s Featured Artist: Bisa Butler
Known for her stunning and colorful quilted portraits, Bisa Butler seamlessly blends a passion for storytelling with the dynamic medium of textiles to create vibrant works of art that document the Black experience. Butler was born in New Jersey in 1973, where she...
March’s Featured Artist: Candida Alvarez
March’s featured artist of the month is Brooklyn-born, Candida Alvarez. She is well-known for her bold and colorful creations such as the piece featured above. I became acquainted with her work through her involvement within Chicago and the Art Institute of Chicago....
Beyond Black History Month: Celebrating Black Artists Year-Round
We’ve entered a new year, and we have a new administration, yet the challenges that we face as Americans are as old as any of us can remember. Every February, we celebrate Black History Month and then feel like we have done our part in recognizing both the adversity...
February’s Featured Artist: Theaster Gates
My great friend, Theaster Gates, is a visual artist and urban planner who describes himself as “equal parts artist, bureaucrat, and hustler.” As an artist, Gates creates multimedia projects, installations, and performance art that confront issues of social justice,...
Art Collection
The Clark family began collecting art more than ten years ago, centering the collection on the work of emerging Black artists in North America and beyond. Collecting art from emerging artists is a form of supporting and advancing the development of the artists’ careers. Just as significant is the empowerment this form of support offers to contemporary social and cultural movements, of which the art is often a part, being that the work is usually a reflection of what is happening in the present moment.
Thematically much of the collection speaks to issues of representation and collective memory, confronting systems of power and recorded history which have constructed versions of race, ancestry, migration, gender, sexuality, and class that warrant contestation. Many of the artists engage their work as visual and social activism, aiming to provoke viewers into civic participation, if not full-blown activism. Throughout the Clark Collection, history, politics, identity, and popular culture are disrupted by artists who create with eclectic materials in mediums spanning the visual arts.
The majority of the Clark Collection is on display in the Clarks’ private residences, with the exception of a few pieces—most notably the portraits of President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama, which are on display in the National Portrait Gallery. These portraits were painted by Kehinde Wiley and Amy Sherald, respectively.
November’s Artist of the Month: Vaughn Spann
Vaughn Spann is one of the most talented artists working today, and he already is off to a great start in his artistic career despite...
October’s Featured Artist: McArthur Binion
So many people have become captivated by the minimalist abstract paintings of McArthur Binion, but he is also an inspiration for me and...
July’s Artist of the Month: Kehinde Wiley
This month’s featured artist is one whose paintings and growing body of work have become instantly recognizable to so many of us who are...
June’s Featured Artist: Nathaniel Mary Quinn
Nathaniel Mary Quinn is an artist whose incredible work stays with you. Known for his captivating collage-like portraits, Quinn has...
Bisa Butler: Portraits at the Art Institute of Chicago
Art has a remarkable ability to transcend social and cultural boundaries, and it’s one of the things that I have always loved to learn more about.
April’s Featured Artist: Bisa Butler
Known for her stunning and colorful quilted portraits, Bisa Butler seamlessly blends a passion for storytelling with the dynamic medium of...
November’s Artist of the Month: Vaughn Spann
Vaughn Spann is one of the most talented artists working today, and he already is off to a great start in his artistic career despite...
October’s Featured Artist: McArthur Binion
So many people have become captivated by the minimalist abstract paintings of McArthur Binion, but he is also an inspiration for me and...
July’s Artist of the Month: Kehinde Wiley
This month’s featured artist is one whose paintings and growing body of work have become instantly recognizable to so many of us who are...
June’s Featured Artist: Nathaniel Mary Quinn
Nathaniel Mary Quinn is an artist whose incredible work stays with you. Known for his captivating collage-like portraits, Quinn has...
Bisa Butler: Portraits at the Art Institute of Chicago
Art has a remarkable ability to transcend social and cultural boundaries, and it’s one of the things that I have always loved to learn more about.
April’s Featured Artist: Bisa Butler
Known for her stunning and colorful quilted portraits, Bisa Butler seamlessly blends a passion for storytelling with the dynamic medium of...
March’s Featured Artist: Candida Alvarez
March’s featured artist of the month is Brooklyn-born, Candida Alvarez. She is well-known for her bold and colorful creations such as the...
Beyond Black History Month: Celebrating Black Artists Year-Round
We’ve entered a new year, and we have a new administration, yet the challenges that we face as Americans are as old as any of us can...