Bio
Baltimore-based visual artist Elijah Trice (b. 1994) thoughtfully renders hyper-realistic portraits of black subjects using oil sticks and paint, creating vibrant images that address the complexities of the black experience. Inspired mostly by friends and family, he highlights the beauty and resilience of blackness while challenging historical narratives and stereotypes that have plagued his community.
As a contemporary descendant of a long line of portraitists, Trice’s paintings shine light on neglected and forgotten stories with a sense of regality, emphasizing joy, elegance, and self-worth. The large-scale composition of his portraits further justifies the significance of the many intricate stories they tell. Trice aims to establish and document a library of compelling narratives and lores to pass down to future generations.
Trice graduated with an M. Arch from the Rhode Island School of Design, Providence, RI in 2023 after receiving a B.S. from Morgan State University, Baltimore, MD in 2019. His work has been displayed in multiple galleries around the country.
Statement
In the studio, I paint portraits of people with phenomenal stories to tell without a platform to share. I decide to document subjects that are a part of the minority experience heavily based in Baltimore City. My curiosity about how people view and navigate the world stems from my architectural and community design background. This expertise is why I allow subjects to express themselves freely, giving them control over their narrative and documentation process. As a native of Baltimore, authentic storytelling and representation of the black and brown experience is crucial in my practice.
My creative process is conceived by photographing and recording interviews of each subject. The composition, color selection, and scale of each painting are directly inspired by audio recordings from the conversations. I use warm, saturated colors for skin tones to represent the spirit and energy of each subject. Techniques such as scraping, pushing, and removal of oil paint are used sparingly in the background to accentuate hierarchy, creating an emphasis on the subject's life experiences as the focal point. My goal is to produce work that reflects the black and brown experience from the lens of Baltimore residents, highlighting themes such as sexuality, gender, race, and immigration.