Floyd Newsum, a painter and printmaker with a career spanning four decades, is a Houstonian by way of Memphis. Currently a University of Houston Art Instructor, he spent his childhood years in Tennessee and received his Bachelor's Degree in Fine Arts in Memphis before moving to Philadelphia where he earned a Master's Degree in Fine Art.
Newsum's latest work demonstrates the influence of West African art in his work. His work is often filled with a signature combination of marks, and abstract patterns along with fish, birds, and ladders. His compositional style generally feels childlike; however, his subject matter centers on cultural climates, political statements, and world events. The contrast of his naive style and serious state of the world focus lend a multi-dimensional quality to his work. In his own words, Newsum has said "I want to provoke thought or conjecture from the viewer. My paintings are a collection of thoughts in a single composition, with the power to present more than one interpretation."
Floyd Newsum has two paintings in the permanent collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture in Washington, DC. His work can be seen in many important private collections around the country and many museum collections, including the Philadelphia Museum of Art and the Museum of Fine Arts Houston.
