Nikkolas Smith is an American contemporary artist, illustrator, and activist. He predominantly depicts

African-American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from any of the Black racial groups of Africa. ...

marginalized voices, as well as

social justice Social justice is justice in relation to the distribution of wealth, opportunities, and privileges within a society where individuals' rights are recognized and protected. In Western and Asian cultures, the concept of social justice has of ...

in his works. His digital paintings are widely shared on social media and have been featured in

Times Square Times Square is a major commercial intersection, tourist destination, entertainment hub, and Neighborhoods in New York City, neighborhood in the Midtown Manhattan section of New York City. It is formed by the junction of Broadway (Manhattan), ...

, ''

The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'', locally known as ''The'' ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'' or ''WP'', is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C., the national capital. It is the most widely circulated newspaper in the Washington m ...

'' and ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

''.

Early life and education

Nikkolas Smith was raised in

Spring, Texas Spring is a census-designated place (CDP) within the extraterritorial jurisdiction of Houston in Harris County, Texas, Harris County, Texas, United States, part of the metropolitan area. The population was 62,559 at the 2020 United States cens ...

as the youngest of six children. He earned a master's degree in

architecture Architecture is the art and technique of designing and building, as distinguished from the skills associated with construction. It is both the process and the product of sketching, conceiving, planning, designing, and construction, constructi ...

from

Hampton University Hampton University is a private, historically black, research university in Hampton, Virginia, United States. Founded in 1868 as Hampton Agricultural and Industrial School, it was established by Black and White leaders of the American Missiona ...

in Virginia, where he drew political cartoons for the school's paper. After graduating, Smith moved to Los Angeles, where he worked as a

Disney Imagineer Walt Disney Imagineering Research & Development, Inc.—commonly referred to as Walt Disney Imagineering, Imagineering, or WDI—is the research and development arm of The Walt Disney Company, responsible for the creation, design, and construc ...

until 2019.

Art career

Smith describes himself as an "artivist", combining activism within his artistic works. Smith's portfolio of artwork ranges in stylization from pop to impressionist, digitally painted on his

iPad The iPad is a brand of tablet computers developed and marketed by Apple Inc., Apple that run the company's mobile operating systems iOS and later iPadOS. The IPad (1st generation), first-generation iPad was introduced on January 27, 2010. ...

Photoshop Adobe Photoshop is a raster graphics editor developed and published by Adobe for Windows and macOS. It was created in 1987 by Thomas and John Knoll. It is the most used tool for professional digital art, especially in raster graphics editin ...

. His work is influenced by

Nina Simone Nina Simone ( ; born Eunice Kathleen Waymon; February 21, 1933 – April 21, 2003) was an American singer, pianist, songwriter, and civil rights activist. Her music spanned styles including classical, folk, gospel, blues, jazz, R&B, and po ...

and

Norman Rockwell Norman Percevel Rockwell (February 3, 1894 – November 8, 1978) was an American painter and illustrator. His works have a broad popular appeal in the United States for their reflection of Culture of the United States, the country's culture. Roc ...

. Smith began his Sunday Sketch series in 2013. He shares weekly Sunday sketches on his Twitter and Instagram channels; select images from this series were compiled into a book. Smith is an author and illustrator of children's picture books. He illustrated the picture book '' The 1619 Project: Born on the Water'' (2021), which was inspired by

Nikole Hannah-Jones Nikole Sheri Hannah-Jones (born April 9, 1976) is an American investigative journalist known for her coverage of civil rights in the United States. She joined ''The New York Times'' as a staff writer in April 2015, was awarded a MacArthur Fellow ...

The 1619 Project The 1619 Project is a long-form journalistic historiographical work that takes a critical view of traditionally revered figures and events in American history, including the Patriots in the American Revolution, the Founding Fathers, along with ...

. ''

Fast Company ''Fast Company'' is an American business magazine published monthly in print and online, focusing on technology, business, and design. It releases six print issues annually. History ''Fast Company'' was founded in November 1995 by Alan Webb ...

'' described Smith's illustrations as using African symbols, various color palettes, and carefully drawn facial expressions to show the humanity of the enslaved people. ''Born on the Water'' ranked number one on

The New York Times Best Seller List ''The New York Times'' Best Seller list is widely considered the preeminent list of best-selling books in the United States. John Bear, ''The #1 New York Times Best Seller: intriguing facts about the 484 books that have been #1 New York Times ...

Children's Picture Book category and was included on '' Time for Kids'', Best Children's and YA book list published in 2021. Smith's paintings from the

2016 Summer Olympics The 2016 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXXI Olympiad () and officially branded as Rio 2016, were an international multi-sport event held from 5 to 21 August 2016 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, with preliminary events i ...

Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...

went viral on social media.

Skyhorse Publishing Skyhorse Publishing, Inc. is an American independent book publishing company founded in 2006 and headquartered in New York City, with a satellite office in Brattleboro, Vermont. History The current president and publisher is founder Tony Ly ...

offered him a book deal, which resulted in the 2016 book ''The Golden Girls of Rio''. ''The Golden Girls of Rio'' was nominated for the 2017

NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Literary Work – Children This article lists the winners and nominees for the NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Literary Work in the children's literature category. Winners and finalists 1990s 2000s 2010s 2020s Multiple wins and nominations The fol ...

. His art often depicts victims of

police brutality Police brutality is the excessive and unwarranted use of force by law enforcement against an individual or Public order policing, a group. It is an extreme form of police misconduct and is a civil rights violation. Police brutality includes, b ...

, civil rights figures,

athlete An athlete is most commonly a person who competes in one or more sports involving physical strength, speed, power, or endurance. Sometimes, the word "athlete" is used to refer specifically to sport of athletics competitors, i.e. including track ...

s, and

cultural icon A cultural icon is a person or an cultural artifact, artifact that is identified by members of a culture as representative of that culture. The process of identification is subjective, and "icons" are judged by the extent to which they can be seen ...

s. Smith began incorporating activism into his art following the

killing of Trayvon Martin On the evening of February 26, 2012, in Sanford, Florida, United States, George Zimmerman fatally shot Trayvon Martin, a 17-year-old African-American, who was visiting his father while suspended from his Miami-area school. Zimmerman, a 28-yea ...

. In July 2013, his portrait of

Martin Luther King Jr. Martin Luther King Jr. (born Michael King Jr.; January 15, 1929 – April 4, 1968) was an American Baptist minister, civil and political rights, civil rights activist and political philosopher who was a leader of the civil rights move ...

wearing a hoodie went viral.

Black Lives Matter Black Lives Matter (BLM) is a Decentralization, decentralized political and social movement that aims to highlight racism, discrimination and Racial inequality in the United States, racial inequality experienced by black people, and to pro ...

commissioned Smith to paint

George Floyd George Perry Floyd Jr. (October 14, 1973 – May 25, 2020) was an African-American man who was murdered by a white police officer in Minneapolis, Minnesota, during an arrest made after a store clerk suspected Floyd had used a counterfeit tw ...

in 2020. The finished work was featured as a centerpiece in

's billboards, and the

Beverly Center The Beverly Center is a shopping mall in Los Angeles, California, United States. It is an eight-story structure located near the West Hollywood, California, West Hollywood border but within Los Angeles city limits, bounded by Beverly Boulevard, ...

shopping mall in Los Angeles. He has also painted portraits of

Tamir Rice On November 22, 2014, Tamir E. Rice, a twelve year old African-American boy, was killed in Cleveland, Ohio, by Timothy Loehmann, a 26-year-old white patrolman with the Cleveland Division of Police (CDP). Rice was carrying a replica toy gun; Lo ...

Tony McDade On May 27, 2020, after 11 a.m., a 38-year-old African-American transgender man, Tony McDade, was fatally shot in the Leon Arms apartment complex by an officer of the Tallahassee Police Department, following the fatal stabbing of Malik Jackson on ...

Breonna Taylor Breonna Taylor (June 5, 1993 – March 13, 2020) was an African-American woman who Killing of Breonna Taylor, was shot and killed while unarmed in her Louisville, Kentucky home by three police officers who entered under the auspices of a No-kn ...

Ahmaud Arbery On February 23, 2020, Ahmaud Arbery, a 25-year-old black man, was murdered during a racially motivated hate crime while jogging in Satilla Shores, a neighborhood near Brunswick in Glynn County, Georgia.

Philando Castile On July 6, 2016, Philando Castile, a 32-year-old African American man, was fatally shot during a traffic stop by police officer Jeronimo Yanez of the St. Anthony police department in the Minneapolis–Saint Paul metropolitan area. About 9 p.m. ...

Bree Newsome Brittany Ann Byuarm Newsome Bass (born May 13, 1985) is an American filmmaker, activist and speaker from Charlotte, North Carolina. She is best known for her act of civil disobedience on June 27, 2015, when she was arrested for removing the Confe ...

, and

Lupita Nyong'o Lupita Amondi Nyong'o ( , , ; born 1 March 1983) is an actress who has received various accolades, including an Academy Award, a Daytime Emmy Award and a Screen Actors Guild Award, as well as nominations for two British Academy Film Awards, a ...

. In 2020, there was a community of artists that created BLM-related social media-based viral work, including Smith, Shirien Damra, Stormy Nesbit, Dani Coke, Robin Hilkey, and Miriam Mosqueda. Smith created an 11 by 10-foot digital painting of

Chadwick Boseman Chadwick Aaron Boseman (; November 29, 1976August 28, 2020) was an American actor. Through his two-decade career, he appeared in a number of projects spanning both blockbuster and independent films, and received various accolades, including ...

after Boseman died from colon cancer in August 2020. The painting, titled ''King Chad'', features Boseman, who played T'Challah in the movie ''

Black Panther A black panther is the Melanism, melanistic colour variant of the leopard (''Panthera pardus'') and the jaguar (''Panthera onca''). Black panthers of both species have excess black pigments, but their typical Rosette (zoology), rosettes are al ...

'', giving the "Wakanda Forever" salute to a child wearing a Black Panther mask. The painting was temporarily on display in

Downtown Disney Downtown Disney (officially the Downtown Disney District) is a lifestyle center located at the Disneyland Resort in Anaheim, California, United States. It opened on January 12, 2001; a component of the Disneyland Resort expansion project alon ...

in California. Smith donated his ''King Chad'' painting to the

Children's Hospital Los Angeles Children's Hospital Los Angeles (CHLA) is a nationally ranked, freestanding acute care Pediatrics, children's hospital in the East Hollywood, Los Angeles, East Hollywood district of Los Angeles, on Sunset Boulevard at the corner of Vermont Avenue ...

, where it is on permanent display.KingChad Other examples of Smith's work include posters for movies such as ''

Dear White People ''Dear White People'' is a 2014 American comedy-drama film written, directed and co-produced by Justin Simien. The film focuses on escalating racial tensions at a fictitious, prestigious Ivy League college from the perspective of several black ...

'', ''

If Beale Street Could Talk ''If Beale Street Could Talk'' is a 1974 novel by American writer James Baldwin. His fifth novel (and 13th book overall), it is a love story set in Harlem in the early 1970s. The title is a reference to the 1916 W.C. Handy blues song "Beale St ...

'', ''

Southside with You ''Southside with You'' is a 2016 American biographical romantic drama film written, produced, and directed by Richard Tanne, in his feature film directorial debut. The film stars Parker Sawyers and Tika Sumpter as a young Barack Obama (the fut ...

'', and ''Black Panther''.

Art Basel Art Basel is a for-profit, privately owned and managed, international art fair staged annually in Basel (Switzerland), Miami Beach (US), Hong Kong and Paris. Art Basel provides a platform for galleries to show and sell their work to buyers, an ...

invited Smith to create the logo for its "what Matters" campaign in 2019. Notable figures have shared Smith's work on social media, including

Michelle Obama Michelle LaVaughn Robinson Obama ( Robinson; born January 17, 1964) is an American attorney and author who served as the first lady of the United States from 2009 to 2017, being married to Barack Obama, the 44th president of the United Stat ...

Rihanna Robyn Rihanna Fenty ( ; born February 20, 1988) is a Barbadian singer, businesswoman, and actress. One of the List of music artists by net worth, wealthiest musicians in the world, List of awards and nominations received by Rihanna, her vario ...

Nipsey Hussle Ermias Joseph Asghedom (born Airmiess Joseph Asghedom; August 15, 1985 – March 31, 2019), known professionally as Nipsey Hussle, was an American rapper, entrepreneur, and activist. Emerging from the West Coast hip-hop scene in the mid-20 ...

, and

Janet Jackson Janet Damita Jo Jackson (born May 16, 1966) is an American singer, songwriter, actress and dancer. She is noted for her innovative, socially conscious and sexually provocative records, as well as elaborate stage shows. Her sound and choreogr ...

. His digital painting of Atatiana Jefferson was shared on the floor of the

U.S. House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Article One of th ...

. In 2021, Smith created the "First Practicing Vegan" for

PETA People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA; ) is an American animal rights nonprofit organization based in Norfolk, Virginia, and led by Ingrid Newkirk, its international president. Founded in March 1980 by Newkirk and animal right ...

featuring

Cory Booker Cory Anthony Booker (born April 27, 1969) is an American politician serving as the Seniority in the United States Senate, senior United States Senate, United States senator from New Jersey, a seat he has held since 2013. A member of the Democ ...

and other prominent

vegan Veganism is the practice of abstaining from the use of animal products and the consumption of animal source foods, and an associated philosophy that rejects the commodity status of animals. A person who practices veganism is known as a ve ...

s in a reproduction of Rockwell's painting, ''

Freedom from Want The right to an adequate standard of living is listed as part of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights that was accepted by the General Assembly of the United Nations on December 10, 1948.United Nations''Universal Declaration of Human Right ...

''. The poster appeared at various bus stops in New Jersey during the 2021 holiday season.

Personal life

Smith is married to a documentary filmmaker. The couple have a son.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Smith, Nikkolas 1985 births Living people African-American illustrators 21st-century American illustrators American children's book illustrators Hampton University alumni People from Spring, Texas