CURATOR / ARTIST

Steve R. Allen

Immaculate patterns, electrifying colors, Adinkra symbols, and regal Black figures cover the massive works of reknown artist Steve R. Allen. They converge at the point of an intense and wandering imagination and a recalling of Indigenous African fractal art techniques that live in many customs, from hair braiding to kente cloth to building styles.

The exhibit will be on view until March 30. Join us again on on Feb. 23 as we dive into Steve R. Allen’s fractal vision of genealogy and architecture, with panelists Oscar Harris and Dr. Kimbeni Mansion, moderated by WCLK radio host, Kiplyn Primus.

Events

Exhibit Opening

Saturday, February 10th 2024

Reception and Artist Talk

Friday, Feb 23rd

7PM-9PM

About the Artist:

Steve R. Allen is an artist recognized internationally for his bold use of color and ability to create in myriad styles. He has traveled extensively internationally with his work. His work hangs in world capitals and many prestigious art collections from Athens, Greece to Rio de Janeiro, Brazil to Beijing, China as “official” artist for the U.S. Olympic Committee. His work has appeared at eight Olympic Games.

In 2013 Steve was honored in a manner few artists have been in their lifetime or posthumously. The Smithsonian Institution National Museum of African American History and Culture acquired four of Steve’s paintings as part of its Founding and Permanent Collection. This honor recognizes his work for its artistic and scholastic merit as well as its historical significance.

In 2020, he was again honored to have his papers acquired by Emory University’s Stuart A. Rose Manuscript, Archives and Rare Book Library. He was also honored in 2019 to have two of his original paintings acquired by the Robert W. Woodruff Library at the Atlanta University Center. Acquisition by these institutions of higher learning is a further acknowledgment of the scholastic value of his work.

Steve’s talent was first showcased before a world audience when he was commissioned to create “Uniting Colors of the World”, a mammoth eighty feet by twenty-eight feet mural, as the City of Atlanta’s “Official” commemoration of its hosting the 1996 Centennial Olympic Summer Games. In the entire world, he holds the singular honor a distinction of being “Official Artist” for the Host City of the 1996 Centennial Olympic Summer Games.

The year of 2014 continued to expand the scope of Steve’s work. He continued to be involved with the Crown Jewel of Historically Black College & Universities Football Classics, the 40th & 41st Anniversary Bayou Classics. The Bayou Classic is contested each year between Grambling State University and Southern University, Baton Rouge in New Orleans, LA during the Thanksgiving Holiday Weekend. Steve created the “Look of the Game” images that continue to elevate the marketing efforts of the Bayou Classic.

Steve was honored to have his work displayed in London during the 2012 London Olympic Summer Games. His work was featured as part of the Art of the Olympians exhibition at the University College of London. He also created artwork live at the ANOCA Africa Village in Kensington Garden during the Games.

In the Fall of 2010 Steve was honored by the Government of Brazil with an invitation to Rio de Janeiro to participate in the celebration of Zumbi dos Palmeras, a great hero in the liberation of Brazilian slaves, and as Guest of Honor for Black Consciousness Week. He presented his painting “O Jogo Bonito” (The Beautiful Game) to the Nation of Brazil in celebration of the 2014 World Cup. The original painting is permanently displayed at the Ministry of Education in Rio de Janeiro.