ARTIST: SHARON BLOOMFIELD HICKS
Art Histories are highly curated presentations of an artists’ life’s work provided for appreciators today, scholars of tomorrow, and generations to come.
Sharon Bloomfield Hicks is a Philadelphia-based artist and member of the Portuguese-Jamaican diaspora. Her work is distinguished by bold color combinations, large shapes and active figure-ground relationships. While informed by in-depth studies at the Barnes Foundation including paintings by Matisse, Modigliani, and Picasso; her aesthetic sensibilities reflect her Caribbean roots. Training at the Fabric Workshop and Museum plus graduate studies at Philadelphia College of Textiles and Science contribute to the graphic nature of her style. Adhering to a belief in the interconnection between art and healing, she synthesizes fiber techniques with painterly intentions to create fresh uplifting work which expresses the harmony and well-being she desires to see in the world.
Hicks holds a BFA in painting from Tyler School of Art and an MS in occupational therapy from Philadelphia University. Early in her career she served as personal secretary to Violette de Mazia at the Barnes Foundation and also completed advanced studies in the fine arts using the Barnes objective method of analysis. Works by Hicks have been included in exhibitions at the Delaware Contemporary, Philadelphia Art Alliance, State Museum of Pennsylvania, Museum of the Hudson Highlands, Galleries at Moore College of Art and Design and Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts.
“Some paintings go through many transformations and the layers of paint reveal my process, the risks taken, struggles, choices.
Other paintings transpire with an effortless immediacy; I leave what’s emerging on the canvas, staying present to what’s there, the unexpected, the surprises.”
COLLECTION: YIN & YANG - TAPESTRIES
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Artist Statement
Working at the intersection of vision and healing, my art process is guided by a passion for learning and a yearning for harmony. Using paint and fiber, I combine contrasting colors with interlocking lines and shapes to create unity and drama. My art runs parallel to my sense of identity and belonging. It’s about finding balance and seeing anew.
As a second-generation American with maternal roots in Jamaica since the fifteen hundreds, I'm inspired by the island’s vibrancy and aesthetic. While informed by Caribbean crafts and folk art including Jamaican basketry, embroidery, wood carvings and Panamanian hand-stitched molas; my work is also influenced by twentieth century painters including Matisse, Picasso, Miro, and Modigliani
The healing arts and prior work as a visual and occupational therapist contribute to my understanding of my art practice as a therapeutic activity. Making art, learning and healing all involve shifts in perception. Healing is an ongoing process of maintaining balance, harmony and wholeness. Creating art is creating harmony and wholeness.
I like the Jamaican national motto: “Out of many, one people”. Belonging is not just a round peg in a round hole, it is disparate identities fitting into a whole. Belonging is the experience of harmony and oneness. I create these in my art.
While exploring relationships of color, line, shape and texture; I intuitively integrate diverse influences, experiences, crafts and painting into unified art forms. When a piece is complete every variable belongs.
Belonging is my sense-of-self reflected back to me in my art. Yet each piece feels refreshing and new. My art expresses universal uplifting qualities. It’s vibrant, energetic, playful and alive.
COLLECTION: YIN & YANG - MIXED MEDIA AND 3D
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COLLECTION: YIN & YANG - PAINTINGS
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Collection: VIBRANT
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Artist Statement
The Vibrant paintings were born of a need to break away from the doom, anger and worry I experienced in 2020 due to political unrest, corruption, and the COVID pandemic. I approached the work as an intuitive spontaneous series, painting three at a time. What emerged from within was what I longed for - bright, uplifting, exotic, warm, whimsical, fun, essential simplicity – healing.
Collection: WOVEN
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PRESS
Concepts and Compositions by Sharon Bloomfield Hicks
A Solo Exhibition at Da Vinci Art Alliance
Highlights Include:
Bloomfield Hicks opens exhibition at Da Vinci AA
Written By Mark Zimmaro
© Sharon Bloomfield Hicks, Yin and Yang T8, 2022, Wool tapestry, 28 x 26 inches
Norristown Arts Building holds opening reception for Pagus Gallery
Written by Brendan Wills, Times Herald staff
Artist Sharon Bloomfield Hicks' studio during the opening reception of the Pagus Gallery at the Norristown Arts Building
© Photo by Brendan Wills Times Herald staff.
“There's a certain modesty in such works that gives them an invitingly relaxed and fortuitous air. Her best pieces are nuanced, alert and affecting in their translation of feeling about Jamaica, her mother's homeland, into patterns of subjective, pleasing colors."
- Victoria Donohoe
Temple Shalom
Written By Victoria Donohoe
© Sharon Bloomfield Hicks, Vibrant 1a, 2020, Acrylic on canvas, 18 x 18 inches
© Sharon Bloomfield Hicks, Yin and Yang 5, 2021, Acrylic on canvas, 30 x 30 inches
To acquire artwork from Sharon Bloomfield Hicks’ collection, email info@amiepotsicartadvisory.com.
Click here to download Sharon Bloomfield Hicks’s CV.
To learn more about the artist: www.sharonbloomfieldhicks.com.
Banner Image: © Sharon Bloomfield Hicks, Install detail of Yin and Yang at Da Vinci Art Alliance
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