Patrick Earl Hammie facts for kids

Patrick Earl Hammie (born November 23, 1981) is an American artist and teacher. He is famous for his large paintings of people and stories. Hammie's art uses lots of movement, bright colors, and feelings. He gets ideas from art history and everyday life. His paintings explore ideas about who we are, what it means to be a man, beauty, and being human. Patrick Hammie lives in Champaign. He teaches as an Associate Professor at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign.

Early Life and Education

Patrick Hammie was born in New Haven, Connecticut. He grew up in West Haven. His mother, Carolyn, was a phone operator. His father, Ervin Jr., was a Vietnam War veteran and foreman.

As a child, Hammie learned martial arts. He was even ranked nationally in karate. He also loved drawing characters from comic books and TV shows. His parents supported both his karate and his art. They took him to tournaments and encouraged him to draw still life pictures and landscapes.

When he was nine, Hammie moved with his parents to Hartsville, South Carolina. His parents separated when he was thirteen. He moved back to Connecticut with his father. There, he went to West Haven High School. He played football and sang in the choir. Hammie's father passed away in 1999, soon after Patrick finished high school.

After high school, Hammie went to Coker College. He studied art and earned his degree in 2004. For two years, he worked as a portrait painter. Then, he went back to school at the University of Connecticut. He earned his master's degree in fine arts in 2008.

Art Career and Projects

Imperfect Colossi

Hammie's art style started to form around 2007. He thought about how his father's death had affected him. He felt he had become emotionally quiet. This made him wonder about how men show their feelings.

This thinking inspired Hammie. He painted himself as he really was, not as a perfect hero. His 2007 painting, Protuberance, shows him pulling at his own body. This painting helped start his first big project, Imperfect Colossi. This series of paintings and drawings shows Hammie trying to change himself. It suggests that being "ideal" is a journey, not a final goal.

On April 12, 2008, Hammie showed parts of Imperfect Colossi at the William Benton Museum of Art. He also showed works at Kathleen Cullen Gallery in New York City. In May, he won an award and a 12-month stay at Wellesley College. This helped him create new art for a show later.

Equivalent Exchange

Starting in December 2008, Hammie painted many self-portraits. In these, he sat on stools or wobbly stands. He was inspired by pictures of America's first black president standing strongly at a podium. He also thought about how enslaved black people were once shown on auction blocks.

The painting Recognition from 2009 shows a large man sitting on a stool. He turns to look at the viewer, but his face is in shadow. Hammie shows a person thinking about the history of black men. The figure is moving from being seen as an object to being seen as a person.

On April 1, 2009, Hammie showed Equivalent Exchange in his first solo art show. It was at the Jewett Art Gallery at Wellesley College. On August 16, 2009, Hammie became a teacher at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

On January 11, 2010, Hammie showed art from both Imperfect Colossi and Equivalent Exchange. This was a solo show at Stewart Center Gallery at Purdue University.

John Michael Kohler Art Center

In July 2011, Hammie went to the John Michael Kohler Arts Center. He joined their arts/industry program. For three months, Hammie used factory tools and materials at the Kohler Company. He made drawings, casts, and sculptures. These included calla lilies and parts of his own body.

Significant Other

Hammie returned to his studio in September 2011. He started making paintings for his next project, Significant Other. These paintings question old ideas about how people of color and women are shown in art. He wanted to change how we understand these groups. He worked with helpers and art experts on this project. He felt that traditional art often left out the stories of minority groups.

Significant Other opened on July 26, 2013, at Greymatter Gallery in Milwaukee. Unlike his earlier work, which showed one male figure, this project shows men and women together. They are often interacting physically.

On February 7, 2014, Hammie showed parts of Significant Other at the Porter Butts Gallery. This was at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. On March 22, Hammie's artwork, Bust of an American Man [early 21st century], was shown. It was part of a special show at the John Michael Kohler Arts Center.

On August 16, 2015, Hammie became an Associate Professor at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. On February 25, 2016, Hammie showed more of Significant Other at Kruger Gallery in Chicago.

Other Works

One of Hammie's portraits was shown in an exhibition called "What's Inside Her Never Dies... A Black Woman's Legacy". This was at Yeleen Gallery for their Art Basel Miami event in January 2016.

About His Art

Hammie's art uses large sizes, strong feelings, and expressive subjects. This reminds people of art from the Baroque and Romantic periods. His style has been compared to the famous painter Rubens.

Since 2009, Hammie has focused on painting people in a traditional way. He studies old Western art techniques and stories. He creates portraits that challenge old art rules. They also explore important ideas about gender and race today.

Hammie mostly works in his studio. He paints from real life and from photographs. His subjects are often himself and people he knows. These include friends, family, and other artists. Music is very important to him while he works. He listens to artists like Bjork, Oddisee, and Daft Punk.

Awards

Hammie has won many awards and grants. These include prizes from the Alliance of Artists Communities with the Joyce Foundation, Indianapolis Art Center, Tanne Foundation, University of Illinois, Wellesley College, and Zhou B Art Center.

Collections

Hammie's art is kept in many important collections. These include Del Mar College, John Michael Kohler Art Center, JPMorgan Chase Art Collection, Kohler Company, Kinsey Institute at Indiana University, and the William Benton Museum of Art.

Influences

Hammie has often talked about the artists who have inspired him. He says some of his favorite artists are Francis Bacon, Luís Caballero, Caravaggio, Renée Cox, Marlene Dumas, Lucian Freud, Leon Golub, Jacob Lawrence, Robert Mapplethorpe, and Kerry James Marshall.