Blu Murphy

Sometimes I miss my originals like I miss people! My artwork feels like little pieces of myself. . Today I’m learning from my students about video editing so I’m just having some fun😆. I love that some days I learn more from them than they learn from me❤️. . . . . . #black #mixedmedia #art #mixedmediaart #collageart #collage #blackartist #blackhistory #blackart #blackhistory #fiberart

There is nothing more beautiful to me than seeing my red line curated on the Gallery wall. I hope my art inspires whoever takes the time to see it. I hope my art continues to tell stories woven in black history. I hope my red line reminds us all that education should be equal and free. Currently on view @gallerygpg . . . . #collage #mixedmediaart #collageart #fiberart #blackartist

KEEP YOUR EYES ON ME. Not the chaos. Not the systems. Not the limits placed on your name. Look at you. The you that was never meant to be confined. The you that still carries light in the middle of everything trying to dim it. We created this piece as a confrontation between who the world says you are and who God already called you to be. Two versions. One body. One facing outward. One calling you back inward. Because everything changes the moment you stop looking at your circumstances and start recognizing your divinity. You are not what surrounds you. You are what lives within you. I am art. I am a man. I am divine. @blu_murphy x @ashleynora_art #TellMeHeavenAintBlack #KeepYourEyesOnMe

Artist Statement Title: BANDED BOOKS Dimensions: 32 x 26 ½ in. BANDED BOOKS is a fusion between my “Le Drip “ series and “RED LINE” It reflects the tension between learning and limitation, where education and restriction exist side by side. Two young girls, inspired by Ruby Bridges walk forward carrying both history and present day realities, their vision interrupted by a red band that speaks to the lasting blinding impact of redlining. The lunchboxes marked “I AM ART” don’t touch me don’t shoot me reclaim identity, while warning symbols reference gun violence in schools and the over policing of urban communities. The fragmented, graffiti text mirrors my experience with dyslexia, challenging the idea that there is only one way to read, learn, or be understood. This work is a reminder that even within systems designed to limit them, they can exist outside the box/frame . Every child is still a masterpiece.. . . This piece will be available for view and auction at @swainsauction_ during Chicago expo.

My piece I purchased from @blu_murphy will be placed in the African American Museum. This truly is a special moment. Blu Murphy is a mixed media artist, educator, and photographer based in Washington, D.C. She combines striking black and white photography with acrylic paint, fabric, and upcycled frames as her canvas. Her work centers her students not just as subjects, but as living pieces of art, honoring who they are, where they come from, and the legacy they carry. Her art is about them. The photography is them. The subject matter is always them. Through her work, Blu connects her students to Black history, placing them exactly where they belong, seen, valued, and remembered. To now have this piece live in a museum space is powerful, humbling, and deeply affirming. This is history in motion. #art #blackart #blackhistorymonth

Blu Murphy I Got Your Black Mixed Media, quilted fabric, photography, felt, paper 38 x 45" 2026 On view now Still Looking Feb 10 - March 3rd Redline is a materially driven portrait series that invites viewers into a tactile encounter with the work, where texture functions as both formal language and social signifier. Incorporating leather, collage, textiles, fabric, and photography, the series uses layered surfaces to construct portraits that emphasize individuality while remaining deeply connected to the visual and material culture of urban life. Each work is built through accumulation, allowing the subject’s presence to emerge through touch, density, and contrast. Central to the series is a quilted red band placed across the eyes of the figures. This recurring form operates as a visual metaphor for the systemic conditions produced by redlining, particularly the educational barriers and cycles of disinvestment imposed on low income Black communities. In this context, the red line marks both concealment and revelation, obscuring sight while making visible the structural violence that shapes lived experience. @blu_murphy

Title: The Crown Knew the Way Before maps were drawn on paper, they were woven into hair. During enslavement, Black women used braiding as more than adornment. It was strategy, survival, and sacred knowledge. Cornrows traced escape routes. Partings marked rivers and roads. Seeds were tucked into styles to carry life forward. What appeared ornamental was, in truth, a language of resistance hidden in plain sight. The Crown Knew the Way honors the brilliance of our ancestors who turned the body into a blueprint for freedom. Hair became a vessel for memory when everything else was taken. The head, our crown, held directions, hope, and the will to survive. Today, braiding styles still carry meaning. They are expressions of identity, protection, lineage, and pride. Each plait connects generations, reminding us that Black hair has always been intelligent, intentional, and powerful. To braid is to remember. To wear our hair is to tell a story and that story has always known the way forward. . Currently on view @gallerygpg . . . . #collage #blackart #mixedmedia #fiberart #black

⸻ Title: I Got Your Back Medium: Vintage cotton fabric, canvas, paper, foam core, felt fabric, thread Dimensions: 38 × 45 inches I Got Your Back honors the women who stand as protectors every big sister who stepped into strength early, every Black auntie, mother, and grandmother who does not play about her children. This work is rooted in generational protection and ancestral presence. It speaks to the unseen hands that guide us, shield us, and give us strength in moments of fear and uncertainty. Despite centuries of adversity, we come from deep resilience, care, and power. This piece is a reminder that we are never alone. Our ancestors walk with us. Their strength lives in us. You have nothing to be afraid of.. . This piece along with two other new work is currently on display at @gallerygpg opening reception tonight!! . . . . #mixedmediaartist #collage #black #artist #fiberart

Throwback to my Le Drip series. This piece carries my Black History Month energy year-round. It was created for every Black boy who has been targeted before being understood. For every leader mislabeled as a criminal. For every child whose innocence was questioned simply because of how they look. This work confronts the injustice tied to the criminal perception of Black and brown boys how society marks them before they ever get the chance to define themselves. This isn’t just art. It’s protection. It’s resistance. It’s truth.

Title: Madam, President “Madam, President” honors the ongoing, often overlooked journey of Black women as they pursue the highest levels of leadership in this country including the presidency itself. This piece, featuring my student London, is both a tribute and a warning. It reminds us that unless we protect, nurture, and invest in our redlined students students like her we risk losing the next Michelle Obama, the next Shirley Chisholm, the next visionary Black woman capable of reshaping this nation. London stands as a symbol of every young Black girl who carries brilliance, potential, and power long before America is willing to recognize it. Her presence in this work challenges the narrative that leadership looks only one way, and exposes the resistance Black women continue to face when stepping into spaces that were never designed for them. This piece speaks to possibility and truth: Black women have always been capable of leading. It is America that has been unwilling to follow. “Madam, President” becomes both a mirror and a mandate reflecting the power already within our communities and demanding that we protect the children who will one day lead us. . . /galleryy. . . . . #artist #art #mixedmediaartist #mixedmedia #blackartists

I’m starting to think that the frame is the art🤔. Excited about what I’m gonna create inside my new tufted frames.GET READY!!!!!. . . . . . . #artist #artsy #collage #mixmedia #tufted

Time for an upgrade🔥🔥🔥🔥! Really having fun with color today. . . . . . #artist #artlovers #college #collageartistsoninstagram #mixedmedia #mixedmediaartist #blackartist #blackart