Photographed by Brandon Hicks
Jonah Elijah (b. Houston, TX) — his work transcends time. Within his narratives, the past, present, and future tend to blur into identity through mediums of portraiture, language, and mass media. Elijah fuses personal memories with broader mythologies, religion, and history to probe the complexities and humanity of Black Americans.
Elijah received his BA in Studio Art from the University of Texas at San Antonio in 2017. MFA from Claremont Graduate University in 2020, his studio practice has evolved through residencies such as the Virginia Center for Creative Arts, where he created the Virginia Series in response to the center’s historic land in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains in Amherst. At VCCA in France, he developed his Reflexion Series, using multiple handheld mirrors to paint individual portraits of family and friends from his daily life. Further inviting viewers into his personal narrative, Elijah continues to explore memory and identity highlighting the joy within Black culture.