About The Art

Autumn Joi Ellis: Echoes of Us

Autumn Joi Ellis, a self-taught artist and greater Youngstown resident, is the second winner of the Butler Institute of American Art’s Midyear Prize. This collection of her paintings titled Echoes of Us expands the movement of Black portraiture in America with a rhythmic vision, no doubt initially sourced from art world superstars such as Amy Sherald and Barkley Hendricks. Yet Ellis’ distinct stylization honors a primal visual expression historically rich in emotive depth, and in this way, she unmistakably elevates her own voice.

With subtle lucidity her work resonates with a passion attuned to human connection and cultural inheritance. The figures on canvas painted in both acrylic and oil were chosen mostly from her own family and friends. Presented under the natural light that floods Davis Gallery they demand the viewer’s attention through economy, fresh gestures, and most intensely through the gaze. It is as if her art is actually looking at you.

As Robert Henri wrote in The Art Spirit:

“We have little interest in the material person or the material thing. All our valuation of them is based on the sensations their presence and existence arouse in us.”

Ellis’ portraits arouse a cerebral gravity, an unmistakable presence, like music, that is universal, timeless and reverberates as far back as ancient handprints found on cave walls in France. Like those first declarations of existence, her work directly asserts: we are here.

Dr. Louis Zona, Executive Director says, “Autumn Joi Ellis has hit a home run with this remarkable talent. In scale it is impressive. Her sense of color and contrast places her in a high position in the realm of realist art.”

CATEGORIES: Exhibition

DATE: June 22, 2025 - August 31, 2025

LOCATION: Davis Gallery

RECEPTION: June 22nd, 2025 1:00pm—3:00pm