Artist Name: Joy Lyons
Painting is my passion and has been for many years. Although I have lived in many different parts of the country I grew up in Connecticut. I currently live in the Metro Atlanta area. I have been interested in art for the greater part of my life. While I spent most of my career as a professional educator my interest and love of art never waned. Approximately 15 years ago I reconnected with my love of creating art and began painting full-time. I consider myself a self-trained artist because I have had no formal training in art. I have participated in group exhibitions across the country.
As an abstract and figurative artist, I aspire to create artwork that captures the beauty that I see in the world. My inspiration comes from a variety of sources including nature, people, and interesting places that I have visited. I was especially intrigued by the colors, shapes, and textures I observed places like in Costa Rica and Ghana. I use oil and acrylic paints on canvas, wood panels, and paper. I hope that my work inspires others to look more closely at the beauty that exists all around us.
Source: R1 / R1
Artist Name: Charly Palmer
Charly Palmer is known for saying “Art should change the temperature in a room.” And
for more than 30 years, his art has spoken for itself. In every painting, Palmer bears
witness to African ancestry and contemporary experiences—rhythmic, visual stories that
shift what each viewer believes. As a fine artist who paints upwards of 50 paintings a
year, he has an innate awareness of documenting the intricacies of Blackness with
depth, patterns, symbols, and textures.
By existing at the intersection of creative expression and the Black experience and
accepting the guidance of his ancestors, he creates, authors, and magnifies the truth
and depth of Blackness. From loose sketches and tight lines to blocks of color and
nuances of mixed media, his art manifests in visual expressions to the questions, “What
came before?” and “What truth must be told?”
Palmer was selected by John Legend in 2020 to create a cover portrait for his Grammy
Award-winning Bigger Love album. He was also commissioned by TIME Magazine to
create the cover art and illustrations for their “America Must Change” July 2020 issue,
based on his 20 years’ experience painting on the subject of race.
Since 2021, Palmer has served as creative director for the Los Angeles Lakers’ In the
Paint, a competitive annual art program recognizing LA-based BIPOC artists. He also
created the cover of the NBA’s 75th anniversary edition 2K22 video game. Most
recently, Palmer’s work has expanded to the metaverse with original NFTs for several
TIME Magazine TIMEPieces collections and a Kayvon Thibodeaux NFT Football
collectible.
