Engaging children with artists who look like them, have similar experiences, and come from similar backgrounds is a great source of inspiration and empowerment. By reflecting their own identities, experiences and motivations (mirrors) and also providing insight into the identities, experiences and motivations of others (windows) can move students toward more nuanced perceptions of the world around them (sliding glass doors).* Discover new BIPOC artists to add to your curriculum.
*Source: By Rudine Sims Bishop, The Ohio State University. "Mirrors, Windows, and Sliding Glass Doors"
Drawing / Painting
Artists have many layered identities and art educators need to present them as such.
Representing diverse artists in your curriculum is only part of an Anti-Bias, Anti-Racist curriculum. It needs to be more than a symbolic effort and art educators need to take into account intersectionality when introducing these artists to students. How do aspects of an artists’ social and political identities (ex. gender, sex, race, class, sexuality, religion, ability, physical appearance, etc.) intersect within their work?
In addition, we recognize that race is socially constructed and it is impossible to put humans in clearly defined categories by race. Racial identity is deeply personal, and artists within any given subgroup define themselves differently. Race, ethnicity, and nationality are all factors artist's individually consider as their personal identity. However, as mentioned previously that is not all that there is to their identity. We know that artists have many layered identities and art educators need to do the research to present them as such.
For the purpose of accessibility, we have attempted to organize artists into 8 subgroups: Asian, Black, Indigenous, Latinx, Middle Eastern/North African, Multiracial/Multiethnic, Pacific Islander/SE Asian, and South Asian. Our goal is to use present artists based on how each artist defines themselves in relation to their work. These groupings are not perfect, as humans are not meant to be divided into boxes. We hope this resource can help art educators identify who is missing from their curriculum in order to create a curriculum more representative of the incredible diversity among students and artists today.
A
Aaron Douglas
American (Black)
Abdias do Nascimento
Brazilian (Latinx)
Abdur Rahman Chughtai
Pakistani (South Asian)
Abdus Shakur
Bangladeshi (South Asian)
Abe Odedina
Nigerian (Black)
ʻĀdil Sīwī
Egyptian (Middle Eastern)
Adrian Brandon
American (Black)
Affandi
Indonesian (Asian)
Afewerk Tekle
Ethiopian (Black)
Ahmed Parvez
Pakistani (South Asian)
Akbar Padamsee
Indian (South Asian)
Akram Ati
Afghani (South Asian)
Adriana Villagra Paraguayan (Latinx)
Albert Namatjira
Australian Aboriginal (MacDonnell Ranges)
Alejandro Macias
Mexican American (Latinx)
Alessandra Exposito
Cuban/American (Latinx)
Alex Janvier
Cold Lake (Indigenous)
Ali Akhlaqi
Afghani (South Asian)
Aliza Nisenbaum
Mexican (Latinx)
Alla Abudabbus
Libyan (North African)
Alma Woodsey Thomas
American (Black)
Amrita Sher-Gil
Hungarian Indian (South Asian)
Amy Sherald
American (Black)
Ana Leovy
Mexican (Latinx)
Andrea Carlson
Ojibwe (Indigenous)
Andrew Hem
Cambodian American (South East Asian)
Anjolie Ela Menon
Indian (South Asian)
Anna Kim
Filipino (Southeast Asian)
Anna Jane McIntyre
Canadian (Black)
Arif Bahaduri
Afghani (South Asian)
Ariuntuya Jambaldorj
Mongolian (Asian)
Ashanté Kindle
American (Black)
Asuka Anastacia Ogawa
Japanese-Brazilian (Black)
Atia Islam Anne Bangladeshi (South Asian)
Atul Dodiya
Indian (South Asian)
Audrey Kawasaki
Japanese-American
Augusto Marín
Puerto Rican (Latinx)
Aung Myint
Burmese (Southeast Asian)
Aung Ko
Burmese (Southeast Asian)
Aya Takano
Japanese (Asian)
Alex Rubio
Chicano (Latinx)
B
Baatarzorig Batjargal
Mongolian (Asian)
Bahman Mohasses
Iranian (Middle Eastern)
Bashir Mirza
Pakistani (South Asian)
Barkley L Hendricks
American (Black)
Battur Tsedenpil Mongolian (Asian)
Baya Mahieddine or Fatima Haddad
Algerian (North African)
Beatriz Milhazes
Brazilian (Latinx)
Benny Andrews
American (Black)
Bharti Kher
British Indian (South Asian)
Bian Qing
Chinese (Asian)
Bidhata K.C
Nepalese (South Asian)
Brittany Williams American (Black)
Bunky Echo-Hawk
Pawnee & Yakama (Indigenous)
Byron Kim
Korean American (Asian)
C
Carolyn Castaño
Colombian American (Latinx)
Carmen Herrera
Cuban (Latinx)
Carmen Lomas Garza
Chicana (Latinx)
Cbabi Bayoc
American (Black)
Charles Alston
American (Black)
Chuang Che
Chinese (Asian)
Charles White
American (Black)
Clementine Hunter
American (Black)
Colin David
Pakistani (South Asian)
Cheanick Nov
Cambodian (Southeast Asian)
Cheong Soo Pieng
Chinese (Asian)
Cheeming Boey
Malaysian (South East Asian)
Christine Ay Tjoe
Indonesian (Asian)
Christi Marlene Belcourt
Métis Canadian (Indigenous)
Clemencia Lucena
Colombian (Latinx)
Crystal Worl
Tlingit and Deg Hit’an Athabascan (Indigenous)
Cedric Michael Cox
American (Black)
Criselda Vasquez
Mexican-American
(Latinx)
Cy Gavin
American (Black)
D
D. Ahsén:nase Douglas
Kanien'keha:ka (Mohawk) (Indigenous)
D. Tsolmon
Mongolian (Asian)
Daniela Garcia
1st generation Mexican American/Latina (Latinx)
Daphne Odjig
Canadian First Nations of Odawa-Potawatomi-English Heritage (Indigenous)
Dáreece J. Walker American (Black)
David Driskell
American (Black)
Delfin Finley
American (Black)
Derrick Adams
American (Black)
Devdad Chakraborty Bangladeshi (South Asian)
Dewey Crumpler
American (Black)
Dilara Begum Jolly Bangladeshi (South Asian)
Dina Chhan
Cambodian (Southeast Asian)
Dong Shawhwei
Taiwanese (Asian)
Duane Slick
American, Mesqwaki, and Ho-Chunk artist (Indigenous)
Duat Vu Vietnamese Canadian (Southeast Asian)
E
Elias Izoli
Syrian (Middle Eastern)
Elizabeth Barreto
Puerto Rican (Latinx)
Ellis Wilson
American (Black)
Elmer Misa Borlongan Filipino (Southeast Asian)
Emma Amos
American (Black)
Emmi Whitehorse
Navajo (Indigenous)
Emory Douglas
American (Black)
Emilia Cruz
Mexican American (Latinx)
Emily Kewageshig Anishnaabe (Indigenous)
Ernest Concepcion
Filipino (Southeast Asian)
Ernie Barnes
American (Black)
Eqbal Mehdi
Pakistani (South Asian)
F
Faeq Hassan
Iraqi (Middle Eastern)
Fadjar Sidik
Indonesian (Asian)
Faith Ringgold
American (Black)
Faramarz Pilaram
Iranian (Middle Eastern)
Farhad Moshiri
Iranian (Middle Eastern)
Firoz Mahmud
Bangladeshi (South Asian)
Firelei Báez
Dominican (Black, Latinx)
Fong Chung-Ray
Chinese (Asian)
Frank Bowling
Guyanan/British (Black)
Frank Buffalo Hyde
Onondaga and Nez Perce (Indigenous)
Frank Morrison
American (Black)
Freddy Rodríguez
Dominican (Latinx)
Frida Kahlo
Mexican (Latinx)
Fritz Scholder
Luiseno (Indigenous)
G
Gabriel Orozco
Mexican (Latinx)
Gabriella Sanchez
American (Latinx)
GAO Xingjian
Chinese (Asian)
George Keyt
Sri Lankan (South Asian)
George Longfish
Seneca and Tuscarora (Indigenous)
Ghada Amer
Egyptian (Middle Eastern)
Gilbert "Magu" Luján
Chicano
Gloria Petyarre Australian Aboriginal (Anmatyerre)
Godo Dashdondov Bayartsetseg
Mongolian (Asian)
Gordon Walters
New Zealander (Māori)
Greg Ito
Japanese American (Asian)
Gulay Semercioglu
Turkish (Middle Eastern)
Gülsün Karamustafa
Turkish (Middle Eastern)
H
Hale Woodruff
American (Black)
Handrio
Indonesian (Asian)
Hamed Hassanzada
Afghani (South Asian)
Hassan Massoudy
Iraqi (Middle Eastern)
Harold D. Smith Jr.
American (Black)
Hashem Khan
Bangladeshi (South Asian)
Hayv Kahraman
Iraqi (Middle Eastern)
Hieu Nguyen AKA kelogsloops
Australian (Asian)
Helen Zughaib
Lebanese (Middle Eastern)
Heri Dono
Indonesian (Asian)
Henry Ossawa Tanner
American (Black)
Henry Taylor
American (Black)
Hong Zhu An
Chinese (Asian)
Hock E Aye Vi Edgar Heap of Birds
Cheyenne and Arapaho (Indigenous)
Horace Pippin
American (Black)
Howardena Pindell
American (Black)
Houmam Al Sayed
Syrian (Middle Eastern)
Hsiao Chin
Chinese (Asian)
Huma Mulji
Pakistani (South Asian)
I
Ibrahim el-Salahi
Sudanese (North African)
Ilyes Messaoudi
Tunisian (North African)
Imran Qureshi
Pakistani (South Asian)
Inji Aflatoun
Egyptian (Middle Eastern)
Iona Rozeal Brown
American (Black)
Irami Buli
Fijian (Pacific Islander)
İrfan Önürmen
Turkish (Middle Eastern)
Ismail Gulgee
Pakistani (South Asian)
J
Jacob Lawrence
American (Black)
Jaime Romano
Puerto Rican (Latinx)
Jacqueline Valenzuela
Mexican-American (Latinx)
Jamal Shah
Pakistan (South Asian)
James Jean
Taiwanese-American (South East Asian)
James Lavadour
Walla Walla (Indigenous)
Jamil Naqsh
British Pakistani (South Asian)
Jamini Roy
Indian (South Asian)
Jason Garcia (Okuu Pin) Santa Clara Pueblo and Tewa (Indigenous)
Jaune Quick–to–See Smith. Salish and Kootenai Tribes, Métis and Shoshone descent (Indigenous)
Jawad Saleem
Iraqi (Middle Eastern)
Jean-Michel Basquiat
Haitian/Puerto Rican (Black, Latinx)
Jeremy Enecio
Filipino (Southeast Asian)
Jesse T. Hummingbird
Oklahoma Cherokee (Indigenous)
Jesse Treviño
Mexican American (Latinx)
Jessi Raulet
American (Black)
Jessica Spence
Jamaican-American (Black)
Jesus Treviño
Mexican American (Latinx)
Jiang Cheng
Chinese (Asian)
Jiha Moon
Korean (Asian)
Jin Jinghong
Chinese (Asian)
Jirapat Tatsanasomboon
Thai (Southeast Asian)
Jitish Kallat
Indian (South Asian)
Jittagarn Kaewtinkoy
Thai (Southeast Asian)
Joaquín Torres-García
Uruguayan-Spanish (Latinx)
Johnson Eziefula
Nigerian (Black)
John Pule
Niuean (Pacific Islander)
Jordan Casteel
American (Black)
Jorna Newberry
Pitjantjatjara (Pacific Islander)
José Antonio Torres Martino
Puerto Rican (Latinx)
José A. Rosa Castellanos
Puerto Rican (Latinx)
José Braulio Bedia Valdés
Cuban (Latinx)
José Cuneo Perinetti
Uruguayan (Latinx)
Josie Del Castillo
American (Latinx)
Julie Mehretu
Ethiopian-American (Black)
Jun Yang
Korean American (Asian)
K
Kadir Nelson
American (Black)
Kama Wangdi
Bhutanese (South Asian)
Kamea Hadar
Hawaiian (Pacific Islander)
Kang Chun-hyuk
Korean (Asian)
Kamrooz Aram
Iranian (Middle Eastern)
Kamāl ud-Dīn Behzād
Persian (Middle Eastern)
Kanak Chanpa Chakma Bangladeshi (South Asian)
Katie Dorame
Tongva (Indigenous)
Katsushika Hokusai
Japanese (Asian)
Kay WalkingStick
Cherokee (Indigenous)
Kayla Mahaffey
American (Black)
Kehinde Wiley
American (Black)
Kerry James Marshall
American (Black)
Kenojuak Ashevak, CC ONu Inuit (Indigenous)
Kent Monkman
Canadian Cree (Indigenous)
Kevin Kabue
Kenyan (Black)
K G Subramanyan
Indian (South Asian)
Khaled Takreti
French-Syrian (Multiethnic)
Khaled Hafez
Egyptian (Middle Eastern)
Khari Turner
American (Black)
Khishigsuren Batdelger
Mongolian (Asian)
Kip Omolade
American (Black)
Kitagawa Utamaro
Japanese (Asian)
Ko Byung Jun
Korean (Asian)
Koon Wai Bong
Chinese (Asian)
Kritsana Chaikitwattana
Thai (Southeast Asian)
Kudditji Kngwarreye Australian Aboriginal (Utopia)
Kurchi Dasgupta
Nepalese (South Asian)
Karla Diaz
American
L
Lambert Ho
Fijian (Pacific Islander)
Laylah Ali
American (Black)
Lava Thomas
American (Black)
Lê Phổ
Vietnamese (Southeast Asian)
Lenore Chinn
Chinese-American (Asian)
Li Yushuang
Chinese (Asian)
Lim Young Sun
Korean (Asian)
Liu Dan
Chinese (Asian)
Liu Guosong
Taiwanese (Asian)
Lkhagvadorj Enkhbat
Mongolian (Asian)
Lois Mailou Jones
American (Black)
Lulwah Al-Homoud
Saudi Arabian (Middle Eastern)
Lucía Méndez Rivas
Dominican (Black, Latinx)
M
M F Husain
Indian (South Asian)
Ma Paisui
Chinese (Asian)
MA Shuqing
Chinese (Asian)
Madelyn Sneed Grays
American (Black)
Mahi Binebine
Moroccan (North African)
Mai Trung Thứ
French Vietnamese (Southeast Asian)
Malina Suliman
Afghani (South Asian)
Mamani Mamani
Aymara/Bolivian (Indigenous Latinx)
Manuel Mendive
Afro-Cuban (Black, Latinx)
Marcus Cadman
Navajo and Kickapoo
Marela Zacarías
Mexican (Latinx)
Massinissa Selmani Algerian (North African)
Matug Aborawi
Libyan (North African)
Md Tokon
Bangladeshi (South Asian)
Melesio Casas
Chicano (Latinx)
Michael Kabotie
Hopi (Indigenous)
Micius Stephane
Haitian (Latinx)
Mickalene Thomas
American (Black)
Miho Hirano
Japanese (Asian)
Miné Okubo
Japanese American
(Asian American)
Moe Brooker
American (Black)
Monir Shahroudy Farmanfarmaian
Iranian (Middle Eastern)
Monirul Islam
Bangladeshi (South Asian)
Monsur Ul Karim Bangladeshi (South Asian)
Motonaga Sadamasa
Japanese (Asian)
Monica Garza
Mexican and Korean (Multiethnic)
Mubinul Azeem Bangladeshi (South Asian)
Musah Swallah
Ghanaian (Black)
Myrna Báez
Puerto Rican (Latinx)
Mahmoud Farshchian
Iranian (Middle Eastern)
Mike Henderson
American
Mildred Howard
American
N
Nabila Horakhsh
Afghani (South Asian)
Nalini Malani
Indian (South Asian)
Nandalal Bose
Indian (South Asian)
Nasreen Shaikh Jamal Al Lail
Indian and Saudi (Multiethnic)
Nathalie Bertin
Métis, French and Algonquin ancestry (Indigenous)
Nayana LaFond
Anishinaabe (Indigenous)
Neil Pasilan
Filipino (Southeast Asian)
Nguyễn Gia Trí
Vietnamese (Southeast Asian)
Nguyen Thi Chau Giang Vietnamese ( Southeast Asian)
Nick Quijano
Puerto Rican (Latinx)
Nina Chanel Abney
American (Black)
Nobo Kumar Bhadra Bangladeshi (South Asian)
Norman Lewis
American (Black)
Norval Morrisseau
Bingwi Neyaashi Anishinaabek (Indigenous)
Nyein Chan Su
Burmese (Southeast Asian)
O
Odili Donald Odita
Nigerian (Black)
Olga Albizu
Puerto Rican (Latinx)
Omar Chacon
Colombian (Latinx)
Omar El-Nagdi
Egyptian (Middle Eastern)
Onon Urjinkhand
Mongolian (Asian)
Orkhontuul Banzragch
Mongolian (Asian)
Oswaldo Guayasamín
Ecuadorian/ Kichwa & Mestizo heritage (Indigenous Latinx)
P
Palmer Hayden
American (Black)
Pan Hsinhua
Taiwanese (Asian)
Patssi Valdez
Chicana (Latinx)
Paula Liz
Puerto Rican (Latinx)
Peng Yihsuan
Taiwanese (Asian)
Q
Qayyum Chowdhury
Bangladeshi (South Asian)
Qin Feng
Chinese (Asian)
R
Rabindranath Tagore
Indian (South Asian)
Rashid Diab
Sudanese (North African)
Ragini Upadhyay Grela Nepalese (South Asian)
Rafa al-Nasiri
Iraqi (Middle Eastern)
Rafael Soriano
Cuban (Latinx)
Raja Ravi Varma
Indian (South Asian)
Ramiro Gomez Mexican American (Latinx)
R.C. Gorman
Navajo (Indigenous)
Reggie Laurent
American (Black)
Reza Derakshani
Iranian (Middle Eastern)
Ricardo Jaén
Panamanian American (Latinx)
River Garza Tongva & Mexican (Indigenous and Latinx)
Robert S. Duncanson
American (Black)
Roberto Gutierrez
Chicano (Latinx)
Robyn Kahukiwa
Māori (Pacific Islander)
Roger Shimomura
Japanese American (Asian)
Romare Bearden
American (Black)
Ronald Ventura
Filipino (Southeast Asian)
S
Sadek Rahim
Algerian (North African)
Sadequain
Pakistani (South Asian)
Safwan Dahoul
Syrian (Middle Eastern)
Saira Wasim
Pakistani (South Asian)
Salima Hashmi
Pakistani (South Asian)
Sam Dunson
American (Black)
Sam Gilliam
American (Black)
Samarjit Roy Chowdhury Bangladeshi (South Asian)
Sara Barriera
Mexican & Puerto Rican (Latinx)
Sara Shamma
Syrian (Middle Eastern)
Seif Wanly
Egyptian (Middle Eastern)
Selwyn Muru
Māori (Pacific Islander)
Seneka Senanayake
Sri Lankan (South Asian)
S H Raza
Indian (South Asian)
Shahabuddin Ahmed
Bangladeshi (South Asian)
Shahzia Sikander
Pakistani (South Asian)
Shakir Hassan Al Said
Iraqi (Middle Eastern)
Shari Arai DeBoer
Japanese American (Asian)
Shashir Bhattacharjee Bangladeshi (South Asian)
Shen Hao
Chinese (Asian)
Shen Kelong
Chinese (Asian)
Shen Qin
Chinese (Asian)
Shonto Begay
Navajo (Indigenous)
Sliman Mansour
Palestinian (Middle Eastern)
SM Sultan
Bangladeshi (South Asian)
Sofia Maldonado
Puerto Rican (Latinx)
Stanley Whitney
American (Black)
Starr Hardridge
Muscogee (Indigenous)
Star Wallowing Bull
Objibwe-Arapaho (Indigenous)
Stephen Wiltshire
British (Black)
Steven Yazzie
Navajo and Laguna Pueblo (Indigenous)
Sun Mu
Korean (Asian)
Sushma Shakya
Nepalese (South Asian)
Suzy González
Xicana (Latinx)
Syed Abdullah Khalid Bangladeshi (South Asian)
Syful Islam
Bangladeshi
(South Asian)
Szeto Lap
Chinese (Asian)
Shizu Saldamando
American
Saba Qizilbash
Pakistani
T
Takashi Murakami
Japanese (Asian)
Tammam Azzam
Syrian (Middle Eastern)
Tarsila do Amaral
Brazilian (Latinx)
Tayeb Mehta
Indian (South Asain)
Therdkiat Wangwatcharakul
Thai (Southeast Asian)
Thornton Dial
African-American (Black)
Thukral & Tagra
Indian (South Asian)
Titus Kaphar
American (Black)
Tommy Wayne Cannon Kiowa/Caddo
Tony Bechara
Puerto Rican (Latinx)
Tô Ngọc Vân
Vietnamese (Southeast Asian)
Toyin Ojih Odutola
American-Nigerian (Black)
Trinh Tuan
Vietnamese (Southeast Asian)
U
Umar Rashid AKA Frohawk Two Feathers
American (Black)
Utagawa Hiroshige
Japanese (Asian)
Uuriintuya Dagvasambuu Mongolian (Asian)
V
Vasan Sitthiket
Thai (Southeast Asian)
Vasudeo S Gaitonde
Indian (South Asian)
W
Walasse Ting
Chinese (Asian)
Wang Zhiyi
Chinese (Asian)
Wayde McIntosh
American (Black)
Wen Zhengming
Chinese (Asian)
Wendi Ruth Valladares
Mexican American (Latinx)
William Johnson
American (Black)
X
Y
Yang Chihung
Chinese (Asian)
Ye Yongqing
Chinese (Asian)
YIN Zhaoyang
Chinese (Asian)
Yolanda Lopez
Chicana (Latinx)
Yoshitomo Nara
Japanese (Asian)
Yun-Fei Ji
Chinese (Asian)
Z
Zakaria Ramhani
Moroccan (North African)
Zainab Haidary
Afghani (South Asian)
Zainul Abedin
Bangladeshi (South Asia)
Zao Wou-Ki
Chinese-French (Asian)
Zayasaikhan Sambuu
Mongolian (Asian)
Zeng Fanzhi
Chinese (Asian)
Zheng Chongbin
Chinese (Asian)
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Asian: a native or inhabitant of Asia, or a person of Asian descent.
BIPOC: Black, Indigenous and People of Color.
Black: of or relating to any of various population groups having dark pigmentation of the skin or ancestry originating in Africa.
Ethnicity: a group of people who identify with one another with similarities such as history, culture, language, ancestry, etc.
Indigenous: ethnic groups who are the original or earliest known inhabitants of an area, in contrast to groups that have settled, occupied or colonized the area more recently.
LatinX: a person of Latin origin or descent.
Middle Eastern: a person of Middle Eastern origin or descent.
Multiethnic: of two or more ethnicities.
Multiracial: of two or more races.
Nationality: the status of belonging to a particular nation.
North African: Peoples with origins based in Algeria, Egypt, Libya, Morocco, Sudan, Tunisia, Western Sahara belonging to a particular nation.
Pacific Islander, or Pasifika, are the peoples of the Pacific Islands. It is a geographic and ethnic/racial term to describe the inhabitants and diaspora of any of the three major sub-regions of Oceania. It is not used to describe non-indigenous inhabitants of the Pacific islands.
Person of color: a person who is not white or of European parentage.
Race: a group of people who share cultural elements such as language, history, etc.
South Asian: a person of origin or descent from Southern Asia.
South East Asian: a person of origin or descent from the South Eastern part of Asi