Kadir Nelson
Kadir Nelson is an award-winning African American artist, illustrator and author. His work is focused on African American culture and history.
Early life
Nelson was born in Washington D.C., attended Crawford High School in San Diego, California[1], and graduated from the Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, New York.[2]
Illustration work
Nelson has done illustration work for Sports Illustrated, Coca-Cola,[3] The New York Times, Major League Baseball, and the United States Postal Service,[4] among others.
Exhibitions
Nelson has had exhibitions in galleries and museums throughout the United States and the world, including the Museum of Tolerance[5] and the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences in Los Angeles, the Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History in Detroit, the Anacostia Museum in Washington, D.C., the Society of Illustrators[6] and the Studio Museum in Harlem in New York, the Bristol City Museum and Art Gallery in Bristol, England, The Yokohama Citizens’ Gallery in Yokohama, Japan and the Tijuana Cultural Center in Tijuana, Mexico.
Collections
His work is in the collections of the United States House of Representatives, the United States Postal Service, the United States Sports Academy, the International Olympic Committee, the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum and the National Baseball Hall of Fame.[7]
Film and television work
Nelson was a concept artist for the film Amistad, and worked on visual development for the animated film Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron.[8] His paintings have decorated the sets of television sitcoms "The Fresh Prince of Bel Air" and "The Jamie Foxx Show," as well as feature films Friday, Set It Off and The Beauty Shop.
Children's book illustration
Nelson has collaborated in creating children's books with several authors, including Ntozake Shange; children's book authors Donna Jo Napoli, Nikki Grimes and Carole Boston Weatherford; director Spike Lee; and actors Debbie Allen and Will Smith.
In 2009, he published Change Has Come, with illuminated quotations from President Barack Obama.
Bibliography
- Illustrations only unless otherwise indicated.
- Brothers of the Knight by Debbie Allen. Dial, 1999.
- Big Jabe by Jerdine Nolen. HarperCollins, 2000.[9]
- Salt in His Shoes: Michael Jordan in Pursuit of a Dream by Deloris and Roslyn Jordan. Simon and Schuster, 2000.[10]
- Dancing in the Wings, Debbie Allen. Dial, 2000.[11]
- Just the Two of Us by Will Smith. Scholastic, 2001.(NAACP Image Award)[12]
- Please, Baby, Please by Spike and Tonya Lee. Simon and Schuster, 2002.[13]
- Under the Christmas Tree by Nikki Grimes. HarperCollins, 2002.
- The Village that Vanished by Ann Grifalconi. Dial, 2002.[14]
- Thunder Rose by Jerdine Nolen. Harcourt, 2003.
- Ellington Was Not a Street by Ntozake Shange. Simon and Schuster, 2004. (Coretta Scott King Author Award)[15]
- He’s Got the Whole World in His Hands, illustrated by Kadir Nelson, based on the traditional song lyrics. Dial, 2005.[16]
- The Real Slam Dunk by Charisse Richardson. Dial, 2005.[17]
- Hewitt Anderson’s Great Big Life by Jerdine Nolen. Simon and Schuster, 2005.[18]
- Please, Puppy, Please by Spike and Tonya Lee. Simon and Schuster, 2005.[19]
- Moses: When Harriet Tubman Led Her People to Freedom, by Carole Boston Weatherford, Hyperion/Jump at the Sun, 2006 (2007 Caldecott Honor book)[20]
- Henry's Freedom Box: A True Story from the Underground Railroad, Ellen Levine. Scholastic, 2007.(2008 Caldecott Honor book)
- Michael's Golden Rules by Deloris Jordan, introduction by Michael Jordan. Simon and Schuster, 2007.[21]
- We Are the Ship:The Story of Negro League Baseball, written and illustrated by Kadir Nelson, foreword by Hank Aaron, Hyperion/Jump at the Sun, 2008.[22]
- Change Has Come: An Artist Celebrates Our American Spirit, quotations from Barack Obama, black and white line drawings by Kadir Nelson. New York: Simon and Schuster, 2009. ISBN 978-1416989554
- Testing the Ice: A True Story About Jackie Robinson, by Sharon Robinson, Scholastic, 2009; ISBN 978-0545052511
- All God's Critters, song lyrics by Bill Staines, Simon and Schuster, 2009
- Mama Miti: Wangari Maathai and the Trees of Kenya, by Donna Jo Napoli, Simon & Schuster/Paula Wiseman Books, 2010, ISBN 978-1416935056
- A Nation's Hope: The Story of Boxing Legend Joe Louis, by Matt de la Peña, Dial Books, 2011, ISBN 978-0803731677[23]
Book awards
Nelson is a two-time Caldecott Honor Award winner. He received an NAACP Image Award for the book Just the Two of Us. For his book, We Are The Ship: The Story of Negro League Baseball, he received the 2008 CASEY Award for best baseball book,[24] the 2009 Coretta Scott King Author Award, and the 2009 Robert F. Sibert Informational Book Award.[25]
Album cover art
Nelson created the mural used as cover art for Michael Jackson's posthumous 2010 album Michael.[26][27]
Postage stamps
Nelson designed the pair of 44-cent U.S. postage stamps that were issued by the U.S. Postal Service in 2010, to honor Negro Leagues baseball.[28]
Personal life
He lives in San Diego, California with his family.
References
- ^ http://www.kadirnelson.com/press/unionTribune5.htm
- ^ "TheGrio's 100: Kadir Nelson, drawing from the past to illustrate hope" 02/01/2010
- ^ advertiser page at Nelson website
- ^ Negro Leagues Baseball Stamp, commissions page, Nelson website
- ^ ONCE UPON A WORLD CHILDREN'S BOOK AWARD, 2005 winner, Museum of Tolerance website
- ^ 2009 Original Art: The Fine Art of Children's Book Illustrations, October 22, 2009 - November 25, 2009, Society of Illustrators website
- ^ collectors page, Nelson website
- ^ visual development page at Nelson website
- ^ Big Jabe, HarperCollins website
- ^ Salt in His Shoes, Simon & Schuster website
- ^ Dancing in the Wings, Penguin USA website
- ^ Just the Two of Us, Scholastic website
- ^ Please, Baby, Please at Simon & Schuster website
- ^ The Village that Vanished at Penguin USA website
- ^ Ellington Was Not a Street at Simon & Schuster website
- ^ He's Got the Whole World in His Hands at Penguin USA website
- ^ The Real Slam Dunk at Scholastic website
- ^ Hewitt Anderson's Great Big Life at Simon & Schuster website
- ^ Please, Puppy, Please at Simon & Schuster website
- ^ Moses at Disney Books website
- ^ Michael's Golden Rules at Simon & Schuster website
- ^ We Are the Ship website
- ^ [1]
- ^ "CASEY Award". Spitball: The Literary Baseball Magazine. http://www.spitballmag.com/Casey-Award. Retrieved 2011-10-22.
- ^ "Kadir Nelson wins 2009 Sibert Medal". American Library Association. January 26, 2009. http://www.ala.org/ala/newspresscenter/news/pressreleases2009/january2009/ymasibert.cfm. Retrieved 2011-10-22.
- ^ http://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/51942/231058 "New Michael Jackson Album Out December 14", Jem Aswad, Rolling Stone Magazine, Nov 04, 2010
- ^ "Michael Jackson Asked Album-Cover Artist To Paint Him Before He Died", Gil Kaufman, MTV News, Dec. 13, 2010
- ^ Krueger, Anne (May 6, 2010). "Negro Leagues players get stamp on history". The San Diego Union-Tribune. http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/2010/may/06/negro-leagues-players-get-stamp-on-history/. Retrieved 2011-11-02. "Nelson said he’s not a huge baseball fan .... He’s more intrigued with the history of the league that provided the only way for black baseball players to compete professionally before Jackie Robinson broke baseball’s color line with the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1947."
External links
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