Chukes

Chukes, a professional artist for more than 40 years, works in clay, oil and mixed media. He has had 30+ solo exhibitions and 60 group shows in galleries and museums throughout the United States and abroad. Currently, Chukes is represented by three major galleries.

His work is included in the private collections of George Clinton, Thelma Harris, Archie and Garbo Hearne, Bernard and Shirley Kinsey, Alonzo and Susan Williams, and notable others. Chukes’ work has appeared in many galleries around the world, from the Boribana Museum in Senegal, West Africa, to the Hearne Fine Art Gallery

in Little Rock, Arkansas, to the Skirball Cultural Center in Los Angeles. He has done several commissions, including works for Archbishop Desmond Tutu.

Chukes has been featured in numerous publications including O, The Oprah Magazine, Ebony, Essence, Valentine New York, and Ciel Paper in London. He has appeared in films and video documentaries showcasing his art. Dedicated to education in art and in African American history, he has given numerous art talks and lectures, and facilitated workshops. Chukes’ formal education includes a BFA in Sculpture and Ceramics from California College of Arts and Crafts and a MFA in Sculpture from Claremont Graduate University. He is now living and creating in Southern California.

Personal History

I was born in 1961 in Vallejo, California, and grew up
in San Jose, California. My connection with art started as result of watching my mother sew clothes for my brothers and me. She would sketch out the clothes
on paper for her patterns and within a few days of her sewing, we were wearing them. I thought there was something magical about her process, so I asked my mother for a pencil and paper, and I began to create images letting my imagination run wild. This was my first introduction to sculpture because the clothes went from a two-dimensional piece of paper to a three-dimensional tactile object.

I was in the fifth grade when clay found me. It was like being reacquainted with an old friend; I knew just what to do with it. My first sculpture was of a human head. My teacher was so impressed he paraded it around the classrooms. I never forgot the wonderful feeling of creating something that captivated everyone.

Clay would define me artistically in high school because of Mr. Mike Shannon, a wonderful art teacher who made it clear I would be remembered by what I created, not by what I scored on tests. I was greatly influenced by activities like building model cars, carving wood and building furniture, music, sculpture, sports, and anything creative. My father was an electrician and everything I know about tools came from watching him. Music was always playing in our home, and my mother gave me my first vinyl records and I’ve been collecting ever since.

I enrolled at San Jose City Community College in 1980 to study art, and a year later I became a father which was life-changing. In college, my athletic prowess allowed
me to receive a full track & field scholarship to San Jose State University where I majored in art.

After leaving college in 1984 without a degree, I felt a huge void in my education. For the next nine years, my parents’ garage became the focal point of my creativity. There, I taught myself how to become a sculptor by understanding the nature of clay. I also began to explore music by playing in a punk rock band, and I started listening to different genres of music which open my mind up even more.

I was invited to exhibit my sculptures in local art festivals and events. The experience was truly wonderful until I approached art galleries with my portfolio. I always felt inadequate not being able to discuss the meaning of my work, so to become more proficient, in 1993, I decided to finish my education at California College of Arts and Crafts. I graduated in 1997 with high distinction honors.

After moving to Los Angeles, I became the resident artist at the Leimert Park Fine Art Gallery where I flourished
for two years creating art to music. In 2001, I met and married my soulmate, Rhonda. Again, I felt compelled to continue my education. I received my MFA in Sculpture from Claremont Graduate University in 2005. Initially, I wanted to become a college professor but I have been consumed to continue to work as a professional artist.

My work is a symphony of all my experiences and the mainstay to my creativity has always been music. For me, music tells stories and histories from all voices; it informs us and defines us. My music is my art. My goal has always been to use my art as an educational tool. I am honored to share my lifelong creative journey with all.

ART IS MY LIFE AND LEGACY!

Artist Statement                                           

Life is like sculpture. We are born. Our parents shape and mold us then set us free. The cycle never stops. We are in a constant state of creation. We never die. We are just planted back into the earth and we come back as clay to be shaped and sculpted again. My art is about human form and my emotional connection towards it. I often exaggerate the human figure. Many of my pieces have hands attached to heads, or hands in the place of necks, or elongated necks and missing body parts altogether. In this, the anatomy takes on an entirely new meaning. I create what I feel rather than what I see and that is what makes the creative process so exciting and infinite.

When I am sculpting I’m a million miles away and I’m not sure if I have ever come back. The more I create the further out there I get. My artistic creations allow me to take my viewers with me on my creative journeys.