Hampton Boyer: Colors of Us

As an innovative, self-taught artist Hampton Boyer (American, born 1988) has exhibited locally and internationally, developing his singular style using bold colors and textures across painting, collage, and drawing. Color is used in dramatic effect in the short video Only in America (2022), marking Boyer’s directorial debut. In collaboration with recording artist Matthew E. White, the two Virginia-based artists explore the complexities of systemic racism. Composed into five movements, Only In America’s soundtrack is written and produced by White, while its lyrics and vocals feature visual and performing artist Lonnie Holley and the Atlanta-based gospel choir arranger Joseph “JoJo” Clarke. In this striking visual and sonic landscape good battles evil, portraying a conflict that while contemporary and familiar in the video, evinces its connection to a much longer struggle for equality.

The exhibition features new studio work by Boyer. As a personal meditation on the injustices Black Americans face, A Story Retold (Black 001) (2024) evokes ideas of compression and strength. Using coiled rope covered in pigment and collaged papers, Boyer winds up the story of his own struggles, pressures endured and overcome, against the backdrop of a larger social history.

Jubilee Onwards (2024), a vibrant collage of pigmented paper celebrates life in the midst of pain, each fragment a memory and feeling that abstracts the experiences of a life lived into a tapestry of color. Together these works call into question how color goes beyond perception to embody unjust structures in our society. 

The Chrysler Museum of Art brings art and people together through experiences that delight, inform, and inspire. Internationally recognized for its collection of more than 30,000 objects, including one the largest glass collections in America, the Museum is free and features the state-of-the-art Perry Glass Studio, a full-service restaurant, shop, theater, works on paper space, and oversees the historic Myers House. The Museum boasts an ambitious schedule of exhibitions, events, and programs, and has been nationally recognized for its commitment to inclusion through its innovative gallery host program. For more information, visit chrysler.org. Follow on social media @‌ChryslerMuseum to receive the latest updates.