Brenda Singletary
— Brenda Singletary—
Artist Statement
I believe that family history, relationships, experiences and what I read and absorb through my culture defines me. I believe I am always evolving and shaped by my memories. These memories are passed down from one generation to the next. My abstracts express the images and stories of personal discoveries of yesterdays and the present. When I’m painting, I immerse myself in color and texture using a variety of techniques and mediums. This allows the work to unfold organically. This freedom coupled with experimental work practices, delivers the essence of who I am as a black woman. I create instinctually. I explore my paintings using visual layers with a variety of materials that sprinkle tears of secrets. These secrets are scars of unspoken memories anchored in a history directly connected to slavery. I make art that honors the complexity, resilience and beauty of the human spirit past and present. From the subject matter to the movement of color, my paintings evoke the energy of self discovery. My mission is to capture a collective experience that will inspire
Biography
Originally from Detroit, Brenda Singletary attended Morris Brown College, an HBCU in Atlanta, and Goddard College in Plainfield, Vermont for her master’s in fine art, MFA-IA. Brenda's husband Michael passed away in December, 2023. Consumed with various emotions, she began painting to capture and illustrate the feelings of grief and the celebration of life and love. Her work is deeply rooted in memories and stories of family. The work illustrates the resilience and beauty of humanity. Exploring mixed media compositions, Singletary reveals hidden and unspoken truths, paying homage to lasting traditions of African American life. Singletary was invited to exhibit her paintings at the University of Michigan's Institute for the Humanities in July, 2022.. Her solo collection was recently on display at the Toledo Museum of Art in 2024, capturing emotions through abstract art by blending acrylics and pastels with sculptural paintings that evoke feelings of profound loss to gratitude. She conducts classes in creativity in her third-floor downtown studio in Toledo, Ohio. She is presently working on exhibits schedule for 2026. Singletary served two years as a panel judge for the President’s Commission on White House Fellows and included in the Library of Congress through History Makers. Her artwork is a part of the White House permanent art collection and hangs in the conference room of the White House Fellows Administration Office. Brenda's work has been exhibited at colleges/universities, corporations such as AT&T, Ford Foundation, McDonald’s Inc., Fox Television, Marriott, Kaiser-Permanente and private collections. She has been presented with the American Express Cultural Arts Award, The Golden Sable Award from the The College Fund, and the Daimler-Chrysler Motion through Expression Art Competition Award. Ms. Singletary received an artist residency at Carmac Art Center in Marnay sur Seine France, to create a collection of work to be exhibited there.
