Lanise Howard’s practice focuses on spirituality censorship and assimilation as well as hidden or marginal stories expressed through a mixture of realistic and digital styles. The core of her research is still based on her experience as a woman of color in today’s society.
She chooses to paint black bodies in apparently sacred locations, always related to a luxurious flora, to investigate her roots. Her ancestors’ approach to nature before slavery, in fact, was built on strong and deep respect for the earth, sun, and stars, and they actually used to worship these natural elements.
Her portraits and allegorical representations have a strong narrative structure, mainly based on contemporary climate. Paintings represent the way Howard creates a meditative space and an alternative reality. As an African American woman, she aims to re-write history, trying to change the ones who constitute the main characters of it, according to traditional canons.
