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Sedrick Huckaby
Born 1975
Alma mater Boston University (BFA, 1997), Yale (MFA, 1999)
Known for Large-scale paintings evoking quilts
Spouse(s) Letitia Huckaby

Sedrick Ervin Huckaby (born in 1975) is an American artist. He is famous for his unique paintings. He uses thick paint to create large artworks that look like traditional quilts. He also paints big portraits of his family and neighbors. These portraits often tell stories about his own life.

About Sedrick Huckaby

Sedrick Huckaby grew up in Fort Worth, Texas. When he was a kid, he loved drawing characters from TV shows. He drew heroes like the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and characters from Battlestar Galactica.

In high school, he took art classes at the Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth. There, he met another artist named Ron Tomlinson. Ron encouraged Sedrick to become a professional artist.

Sedrick studied art at several universities. He earned his Bachelor of Fine Arts from Boston University in 1997. Then, he got his Master of Fine Arts from Yale University in 1999.

Today, Sedrick is a professor. He teaches painting at UT Arlington. He has been teaching there since 2009. Sedrick is married to artist Letitia Huckaby, and they have three children.

Sedrick's Artworks

Opal Lee by Sedrick Huckaby
Opal Lee (2023), a portrait at the National Portrait Gallery in Washington, D.C.

Sedrick Huckaby often uses images of quilts in his art. For many years, quilts were in the background of his paintings. Now, they are often the main subject of his work. He uses thick layers of paint to make them look real.

One of his famous art series is called Big Momma's House. This collection from 2008 includes 65 paintings and drawings. It focuses on his grandmother, Hallie Beatrice Carpenter. She was the leader of his family and everyone called her "Big Momma."

His painting "A Love Supreme (Spring)" is inspired by a jazz song. It shows colorful quilts draped across the canvas. The painted folds look like the rhythm of the music. It also honors his grandmother's traditional African-American quilts.

Another series is The 99% - Highland Hills. This collection features portraits of people from his community. He created it after the 2011 Occupy Wall Street movement. The paintings show how different people experience money problems in the U.S.

In 2020, Sedrick's paintings were in National Geographic magazine. They were part of a story about the Clotilda. This was the last known slave ship to arrive in the U.S. in 1860.

You can see Sedrick Huckaby's art in many famous museums. Some of these include the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art and the Whitney Museum of American Art. His work is also at the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston and The Art Institute of Chicago.

Awards and Honors

Sedrick Huckaby has won many important awards for his art.

  • In 1999, he received the Kate Neal Kinley Memorial Fellowship.
  • Also in 1999, he won the Alice Kimball English Traveling Fellowship from Yale University. This award helped him travel to study the art of Henry Tanner.
  • In 2004, he received a grant from the Joan Mitchell Foundation. This grant helps talented painters and sculptors.
  • In 2008, he won a Guggenheim Fellowship. This is one of the most respected art awards in the country.
  • In 2016, he was a winner of the Outwin Boochever Portrait Competition. This competition is held by the Smithsonian's National Portrait Gallery.
  • In 2018, he was named the Texas State Visual Artist for painting and drawing.
  • Also in 2018, he won an arts and letters award from the American Academy of Arts and Letters.

Art Shows

Sedrick Huckaby's art has been shown in many solo exhibitions. Here are a few:

Where to Find His Art

Sedrick Huckaby's art is part of several important collections. You can find his work at:

  • The Minneapolis Institute of Art, Minneapolis, Minnesota
  • The Fort Worth Central Library, Fort Worth, Texas
  • The African American Museum, Dallas, Texas
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