Sonya Clark

Calling all marigolds! Indigo Arts Alliance’s 2021 Mentorship Resident Sonya Clark invites Black women and Black female-identifying individuals to take part in her forthcoming project, “Marigirls.” Inspired by Toni Morrison’s “The Bluest Eye,” 9- to 11-year-old characters (Freida, Pecola, and Claudia), this project draws on Morrison’s use of marigolds as a symbol of Black girls thriving. To participate, visit the link in our bio to submit one photo of yourself between the ages 9 to 11. @sysclark hopes to collect up to 750 photos. Together, the images will represent a rich archive of Black girlhood and reflect the ways Black women continue to flourish despite all obstacles. The final artwork will be unveiled in 2028 as part of an upcoming exhibition. And the best part? For each photo submitted, Clark will personally donate $10 to @indigoartsalliance , helping to sustain our mission of building artist relationships that last a lifetime. Follow @marigirlsproject to watch #Marigirls grow! #SonyaClark #IndigoArtsAlliance #ToniMorrison

“Hairdressers are my heroes. The poetry and politics of Black hair care specialists are central to my work as an artist and educator. Rooted in a rich legacy, their hands embody an ability to map a head with a comb and manipulate the fiber we grow into complex form. These artists have mastered a craft impossible for me to take for granted” - Sonya Clark (@sysclark ) Sonya Clark’s “The Hair Craft Project” was a unique collaboration between the artist and Black hairstylists, who embody their own distinct form of artistry. Recognizing the stylists as fellow textile artists, Clark has noted that hairdressing was the first textile art form. Using her own head as a canvas, she partnered with the stylists to dismantle the barrier between hair salons and art institutions, revealing both as spaces of craft, skill, improvisation, aesthetics, and commerce. Each meticulously crafted hair design was documented through photography and paired with a complementary textile panel that the hairstylists intricately created on canvas. “The Hair Craft Project” builds upon Clark’s previous work with sculptural fiber wigs, a practice she began as a student at Cranbrook Academy of Art while delving into the broader cultural significance of braiding. These works showcase Clark’s deep appreciation for hairstyling as an art form and bring to light the remarkable creativity inherent in this ritualized practice, which has been passed down through generations. See “The Hair Craft Project” on view in Sonya Clark: We Are Each Other, through September 22. #sonyaclark #weareeachother #sonyaclarkmad #Blackhair #haircraftproject

[Guggenheim Fellow!] Today it was announced I was selected to receive this prestigious prize. It might seem to be recognition of a singular achievement, but let me assure you that this honor is communal. The number of people who have supported, guided, encouraged, mentored, loved, challenged, and taught me through the years is endless. This one is for each of you. This is for the ancestors. This is for the one who has been by my side for thirty years. This is for the friend who encouraged me to apply once again and all those who wrote letters of reference, this time and all the previous times. This is for all of you who uphold the power of art and artists. I am so honored to join the fellowship. Congratulations to each in the cohort! Deeply grateful to @guggfellows #guggfellows26 📷with #glenligon MeWe @studiomuseum #grateful #blackartist #guggenheim

Salvador, Brazil you have my heart! Soul nourishing from the food to the sea to the art/artists/curators/designer/historians to endless museums to the rhythms of the diasporic culture that pulsed through every moment, I am filled. Thank you @aramyamihotel for the beautiful views and cheerful staff. Thank you @nadiataquary and @adelmo.lins for your big hearts and stunning work. Deep gratitude to my beloveds Marcia and Daniel Minter and Rachel Harding for building a bridge for my spirit to revel in this magical city. I hope to be back again and again🤎🤎🤎

In NYC for business, art, food, friends and family. Feeling nourished. Thank you to my people, fellow artists, and Brooklyn Museum, Whitney, Hauser Wirth, MAD Studio Museum, and Pratt Manhattan

My beloved Richmond family. If you can't feel the love in these photos, I can't help you. And, yes, my flight was canceled because of a snowstorm. And, yes, that kept me in Richmond for 3 more days. And, yes, it was a joy.

30 years ago two twenty-somethings walked down an aisle bathed in the love of community. Here are thirty-some photos with my favorite person. In the midst of the madness of this world, may you feel our love as strongly as we feel yours. The realness of the love, the laughter, and the support we feel from each other and our communities is everything to us. Love knows no bounds. #anniversary #blacklove #love #community

My ball drop for the New Year [Ophanim, 2025©️Sonya Clark] In 2026 and beyond, may we embody our cultural #ancestors as we hold each other in love and resist the forces that seek to undo our light. NinaSimone, JamesBaldwin, ToniMorrison, EllaBaker, GwendolynBrooks, and so many more watching over us. #art #artist #artasresistance #NewYear

#FallofFreedom gathering at Amherst College Frost Library. Together we performed a simultaneous reading of the oft-banned The Bluest Eye. It was a powerful act of community and resistance to authoritarianism. Grateful to be a part of the hundreds of Fall of Freedom activities across the nation. Many thanks to my art brother @dreadscottart and all the others who manifested this.

In unison and with purposeful #resistance to authoritarianism, members from the #AmherstMA #community gathered in the Reading Room of Frost Library at Amherst College for one of my #simultaneous readings as part of #falloffreedom. Together we read one of the most #bannedbooks #tonimorrison #thebluesteye. Our chorus of voices like the #marigold #seeds planted by the characters in the book, a small but powerful act. And we gave away copies of the newest edition of the book. Grateful to the community, students, faculty, staff, college president and senior administrators for joining. #readbannedbooks #art #artist #activism #literature #blackauthor #nobelprize #blackgirlmagic #fightthepower #simultaneousreading

What is a simultaneous reading ? Everyone is assigned different pages of the text to read. We read our assigned pages out loud and in unison. How long does it take? 50 people, each assigned 4 pages of a 200+ page book takes about 8 - 12 minutes! All are welcome to join us this Friday for a "A Simultaneous Reading of Toni Morrison's The Bluest Eye" as part of Fall of Freedom. Friday, November 21 at 12 - 1 pm Frost Library, Amherst College Amherst College Center for Community Engagement (CCE) Free books and refreshments will be provided. Bring a friend!

Grateful to all the sisters: Dorothy Butler Gilliam for writing this biography of Paul Robeson, Gwendolyn Brooks for her poem named for him, Jennifer Harge for embodying my transliteration of the poem into my Black hair font (Twist), Rita Dove for naming the font, and Eslanda Robeson for her activism and purpose. Video by Jeremy Brockman