Ekua Holmes facts for kids

Ekua Holmes (born in 1955) is an American artist. She is known for her unique mixed-media collages. She also illustrates children's books. Holmes uses many different materials in her art. These include newspapers, photos, and fabric. She layers them to create colorful pictures. Many of her artworks show scenes from her childhood. She grew up in the Washington Park neighborhood of Roxbury, Boston, MA.

About Ekua Holmes's Art

Ekua Holmes was born in Roxbury, Massachusetts in 1955. She studied photography at the Massachusetts College of Art and Design. She earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA) degree there.

Creating with Found Objects

As a young artist, Holmes learned about "found objects." These are everyday items that artists use in their work. She uses old newspapers, magazines, and stamps. She often arranges these materials to make interesting patterns.

Her art often explores themes like childhood and family. It also shows memories and strength. Many of her collages remind people of other famous Black artists. These include Romare Bearden, Jacob Lawrence, and Njideka Akunyili. Like them, Holmes's art celebrates Black images and stories.

Holmes once said about her work: "I honor their legacies by bringing them forward to life." She uses torn and cut shapes of colors and textures. She builds her world with these scraps. It's like making a special quilt.

Google Doodle Artwork

In 2015, Ekua Holmes created a special image for Martin Luther King Jr. Day. This image was a Google Doodle. It was shown on Google's U.S. homepage. The collage showed Dr. King walking with other activists. They were in Selma, Alabama.

Working with Arts Organizations

Holmes started an organization called The Great Black Art Collection. It helps new artists share their work. It also introduces Black art to more people.

Today, Holmes is the Vice-Chair of the Boston Art Commission. This group helps decide about public art in Boston. She also works at MassArt. There, she helps manage a mobile art program called sparc! the ArtMobile.

Children's Book Illustrations

Ekua Holmes has illustrated several children's picture books. Many of these books have won awards.

• Voice of Freedom: Fannie Lou Hamer, The Spirit of the Civil Rights Movement, written by Carole Boston Weatherford (2015)
• Out of Wonder: Poems Celebrating Poets, by Kwame Alexander with Chris Colderley and Marjory Wentworth (2017)
• The Stuff of Stars, by Marion Dane Bauer (2018)
• What Do You Do with a Voice Like That?: The Story of Extraordinary Congresswoman Barbara Jordan, by Chris Barton (2018)
• Black Is a Rainbow Color, by Angela Joy (2020)

Art Shows and Collections

In 2021, some of Holmes's book illustrations were shown at the MFA Boston. This solo exhibition was called "Paper Stories, Layered Dreams The Art of Ekua Holmes". It featured collages and original drawings from her books.

Her first art show was in 2000. It was called "Renewal and Regeneration." It took place at the Museum of Our National Heritage in Lexington, Massachusetts.

Her artwork has also been shown at other places. These include the Hess Gallery and Harvard Medical School's Transit Gallery.

You can find her art in public collections. These include the Museum of the National Center of Afro-American Artists. Her work is also at the Boston Medical Center and Boston Children's Hospital.

Holmes also created an artwork called "Crosswalks and Bus Stops". It was installed in large glass windows at Northeastern University. This artwork was part of the university's public art program.

Awards and Honors

Ekua Holmes has received many awards for her art.

• In 2013, she won an NAACP Image Award.
• Her book Voice of Freedom won several honors. These include a Caldecott Honor and a Robert F. Sibert Honor. It also won the John Steptoe New Talent Illustrator Award.
• She won the Coretta Scott King Illustrator Award in 2018 for Out of Wonder. She won it again in 2019 for The Stuff of Stars.
• In 2013, she received a Brother Thomas Fellowship from The Boston Foundation.
• Also in 2013, she joined the Boston Art Commission. This group helps manage public art in Boston.
• In 2015, she created a large interactive collage for the Institute of Contemporary Art Boston. It showed scenes of Boston changing.