5 minutes with Dawn Okoro
Dawn Okoro’s art has generated a lot of buzz among black women, naturals in particular, for her beautiful portrayal of them. Dawn has presented her work in London, New York and Chicago and her celebrity clients include Erykah Badu.
Where you from?
D: I was born and raised in Texas. After living in Austin on and off for about 10 years, I recently moved to New York City.
In your own words, describe what you do.
D: I am an artist who works in several mediums including painting, drawing, and photography. I use my work as a tool to communicate and bring awareness to certain issues.
What inspires you?
D: I am inspired by popular culture and its effect on society. I am also inspired by the interesting people that I meet.
“Pop culture and its effects on society”; Could you elaborate?
D: I am actually working on an art project that addresses the behavior of young women who send out sexualized images of themselves via cell phones or posting them online. Teens see how celebrities such as Kim Kardashian and Paris Hilton are able to capitalize from such behavior. Some think it’s “cool” or “just fun” to send out these racy photos of themselves regardless of the potential consequences.
For my art project, I am creating drawings and paintings that depict people who engage in this behavior. I am also reaching out to the public for discussion.
Many people feel that you perfectly catch the essence of young, modern black women. Do you agree?
D: Over the past few years, I have focused on the young and modern black female image and I hope to have captured strength and vulnerability in my work. In order to capture these qualities, all I have to do is look around me. I consider elements of myself, my family and friends, as well as other people I have observed. Many of my collectors are women (various ethnicities). I feel that they are drawn to these works because they can see a bit of themselves within it.
Why are so many of your paintings of women with natural hair?
D: Women wearing natural tight coils have absolutely been overlooked. Sometimes I flip through magazines, and I have the desire to take images of the pale model with blonde straight hair and flip it into something else. I want to change it into an image of a beautiful brown skinned woman with a big afro. The afro is a symbol of strength and pride. I also enjoy painting black natural hair because the texture is aesthetically beautiful.
Why did you go natural?
D: I went natural about a year and a half ago because of the damage done to my hair by relaxers and because I wanted to enjoy my kinky coils. Now I am natural for style and convenience.
What is your personal mantra?
D: My personal mantra is– screw ‘em.
Dawn will have work on display at the World Financial Center from June 9-25 for the Scholastic Art and Writing Awards as part of an exhibit of past winners. Please visit http://www.dawnokoro.com for more information about Dawn and her work.
Great interview!
incredible artwork
Very inspiring work.
LOVE IT!
Love the mantra….great work!
Fabulous! *Sucks breath in and goes to check prices…*
Beautiful.
I love the style. Its very retro looking.
Wow. Another reason I love BGLH. I’m never bored and you always feature amazing people that inspire
bought 2 pieces and they came well packaged and of course look even better in person!
I simply love this artists technique. I drew a self portrait of me that is almost EXACTLY like the one with the girl sitting down, fro and all. Beautiful work my dear. keep it up.
Absolutely wonderful. And I must agree with Tania, BGLH really knows how to keep us inspired and entertained. Thanks for being such an awesome outlet of culture, beauty, and thought-provoking articles.
Dawn’s art is beautiful.
fantastic