Black Artists Share Their Skills With #DrawingWhileBlack

Revel in the work of Black artists who use pen, ink, paint, and computers to create incredible characters, wondrous worlds, and fabulous fan art. Black creators are taking to Twitter and Instagram once more, sharing their sketches, paintings, and prints with the hashtag #drawingwhileblack.

Check out their art. Follow their accounts. Commission their work. Do not share their pieces without crediting them. That is theft.

Hey everyone! I FINALLY graduated and Im currently looking for work in either character design,development ,or color design!⭐️✌🏿Im available for in-house or freelance work and can start ASAP. Prev. At WB animation https://t.co/SuLbf46ueq
Email: [email protected] pic.twitter.com/hYFDrip1nj

— Abelle✨ (@abellehayford) May 7, 2020

Hey everyone. My name is Charles Chaisson, and I'm a #Brooklyn based freelance illustrator originating from #NewOrleans #drawingwhileblack pic.twitter.com/KyK94XyWRe

— Charles Chaisson (@CharlieChaisson) September 17, 2017

#drawingwhileblack #blackgirlmagic
Hi! I’m Talia, a black artist in Baltimore. I’m new to twitter but I love drawing portraits and character!

Instagram: https://t.co/khJD6XCqpD pic.twitter.com/wM39UK8W98

— talia s. (@saphiraas) June 2, 2020

Hi, I'm Rashad- from Oakland but currently in NYC. I've been a game developer for over a decade and I might have worked on something you've played! For most of my career I've been the only black guy in the room. Lets change that. #BlackArtMatters #drawingwhileblack pic.twitter.com/lLjr0fVeYu

— Rashad Redic (@SpiceBrotherOne) June 2, 2020

My name is Candice Messado
I focus on background paintings and vis dev~ I'm a recent graduate looking for some work✨ #drawingwhileblack #PortfolioDay

🌟: https://t.co/PBAQVBZujN pic.twitter.com/LX2s0pzFJr

— Candice Messado (@CandiceMessado) June 1, 2020

hi #drawingwhileblack my name's Cas, I'm a mixed blasian+ 16y/o. My art means everything to me & has been the only escape Ive had all my life.
I would love to make art my full time job but its hard since I dont have a large platform, so id appreciate if you could rt this, thanks! pic.twitter.com/AHDV0lx1TY

— ✊🏽✊🏾✊🏿 #BLM (@m1kashida) June 2, 2020

#drawingwhileblack I am a small illustrator from Barbados with hopes of one day being able to draw full-time for a living! pic.twitter.com/dhLHWJ6DNW

— Ceej ⚔️ BLM (@ceejinary) May 31, 2020

Hi, I'm Naeem! I'm an illustrator and concept artist that loves to draw and I thought I'd share some of my past work! #drawingwhileblack pic.twitter.com/e1hpKUvA7D

— Naeem Stewart (@NaeemBStewart) June 2, 2020

It’s so nice to see a #drawingwhileblack trend !
I’m Eve, 21 and carribean. I’m a fresh freelance artist drawing whimsical and ethereal worlds, taking roots in mythology and ancient art forms. I wish to improve my art and try hard to make a living out of it. ✨ https://t.co/PRuEwvv3TO

— 🌜eve pierrelune🌛 (@evepierrelune) May 30, 2020

I have a lot of thoughts, not a lot of answers. But this is how I feel. #BlackLivesMatter #drawingwhileblack pic.twitter.com/sa08CMcvZQ

— Ky (@KyWilliamsDraws) May 31, 2020

I finally finished my film today, but I dont feel like celebrating. Instead, I'll share this.

I am a storyteller because I grew up being underrepresented. And I've felt its negative effects. I'm changing the way we're looked at. We are human and we matter. #drawingwhileblack pic.twitter.com/QBb6eaffzY

— Caleb Blue (@BlueYourMind) May 30, 2020

couldn't sleep , drew the queen #drawingwhileblack #ArtistOnTwitter #blackgirlmagic pic.twitter.com/fvP62SxVV8

— 🙌🏾🙌🏾♡♡𝓜𝓪𝓱𝓸𝓾𝓼𝓱𝓪𝓷𝓲♡♡ BLM 🙌🏾🙌🏾 (@mahoushani) May 30, 2020

HI!! I'm Ken and I'm a 2D animator/Illustrator who recently graduated from SVA. I love colors and characters #drawingwhileblack pic.twitter.com/ybgHFGjATl

— 🎓Ken(Graduate)🎓 (@lieutkenny) May 29, 2020

Hey hey! I'm Edge and I make whimsical, colourful things ✨

🔸https://t.co/ndsokPh3ba
🔸[email protected]
🔸https://t.co/kPgczmUEec#drawingwhileblack pic.twitter.com/xWZ88AiDph

— ✨🌈 Edge 🌈✨ (@ArtOfEdge) May 30, 2020

👋🏿, I'm Nyobee, a comics artist and character designer. I use my art to tell stories about growing up nerdy. Inspired by manga, and Black culture, I focus on creating artwork that both showcases my life as a black person and a nerd. #drawingwhileblackhttps://t.co/fmtG7SmVMC pic.twitter.com/nDcxYMM1CW

— Nyobee ✊🏿 (@nyobeedraws) May 31, 2020

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“Policemen swear to god Love's seeping from the guns I know my friends and I Would probably turn and run” (MGMT - Little Dark Age) - - - - Please stop killing us. (Sign the petition in my bio) #blacklivesmatter✊🏾#justiceforahmaud#justiceforgeorgefloyd#blm#blmart#blacklivesmatter#blackartists#blackartist#blacklivesmatterart#protest#justiceforbreonna#icantbreathe#drawingwhileblack

A post shared by ✊🏾♡︎Dᴇᴇ♡︎✊🏾 (@moosepudding) on May 28, 2020 at 3:15pm PDT

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X-Factor sketch! Hope you guys had a great Friday! ❤️❤️ … #art #digitalart #originalcharacter #characterdesign #xfactor #anime #manga #cartoon #comic #sketch #doodle #blackartist #drawingwhileblack #design #illustration #artist #artistoninstagram

A post shared by Mikayla M. (@mickeyn163) on May 29, 2020 at 6:55pm PDT

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Dear Karen #blacklivesmatter✊🏽✊🏾✊🏿 #drawingwhileblack

A post shared by Kaleb Thompson (@artist_known_as_kaleb) on Jun 3, 2020 at 7:20am PDT

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Huge Shout Out and Thank You goes to @galicagraphics_gee for this piece. He tagged me in it the other day and I wanted to immediately share it with everyone but the observance of Blackout Tuesday took precedence. Also… he's not making prints for this… it's just something he needed to get off his chest. I couldn't be more appreciative or understanding of his position… Sir, art is your outlet of expression and during these times of chaos and weak leadership… taking the moment to lay your heart out on a canvas so that you can breathe is what's necessary. I'm just fortunate and thankful that you chose my cosplay to do it with… Pay attention to this artist, y'all… #Repost @galicagraphics_gee ・・・ Needed to do some #Artwork to clear my mind. S/O to @hellspawned_cosplay for inspiring this piece I support his message and agree. The more we promote the importance of #BlackHeroes and making it normal concept and show #BlackLivesMatter and #BlackHeroesMatter hopefully we can reach many and uplift the culture and uplift the next generation. #HeMan #hemanandthemastersoftheuniverse #GarlandArt #CharacterDesign #HeSol He-Man or He-Sol i support👍🏾✊🏾✊🏾 #BlackFathers #Afro #DrawingWhileBlack #Drawing #AfroAnime #cosplay #Cosplayer #Cosplayers #BlackCosplayers #CosplayingWhileBlack #BlackHeroesMatter #RepresentationMatters #poccosplayer #blackcosplayerhere #BlackNerds #MOTU #motu2020crew @timseeley @thatkevinsmith @marcbernardin

A post shared by Demetrius S Holt (@hellspawned_cosplay) on Jun 3, 2020 at 3:18am PDT

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“I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the colour of their skin, but by the content of their character.” -MLK Racism is the most irrational form of judgement there is. To think that we still live in a world where MLK’s message is still so prevalent is honestly insane! Its not enough to to post or tag, we all need to be active in the fight against racism. Swipe left for a list of links where you can help donate to causes supporting the #BLM movement. Please donate where you can. #BlackLivesMatter ✊🏼✊🏽✊🏾✊🏿 #Drawingwhileblack #blackart #amandaqart

A post shared by AmandaQ Art (@amandaqart) on Jun 3, 2020 at 2:40am PDT

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Support Black Art✨ #blacklivesmatter #blackart #drawingwhileblack The artist: @saphiraas 🖤

A post shared by GREGORY SAMUEL (@gregxoxo) on Jun 2, 2020 at 2:08pm PDT

#DrawingWhileBlack isn’t a new hashtag. It was pioneered in 2017 by illustrator, Abelle Hayford (@abellehayford).

Starting a hashtag event to celebrate and appreciate black artists this weekend !🙌🏿✊🏾👌🏽💫 RTs are greatly appreciated! #drawingwhileblack pic.twitter.com/SFptXsuuMk

— Abelle✨ (@abellehayford) September 13, 2017

hi my name is Annabelle✨I'm a first generation Ghanaian American animator and illustrator! I'm also the organizer of #drawingwhileblack 💫💪🏿 pic.twitter.com/mBVqbVPh8C

— Abelle✨ (@abellehayford) September 15, 2017

Hayford uses their Twitter account to advocate for Black artists, and in 2019 created a directory to help them get hired. Following a fresh outpouring of magnificent art, they have updated the directory.

[RT are appeciated] the #drawingwhileblack directory is now updated !✨ This is a great resource to find a black artists in fields like Illustration,Animation, Graphic Design, Comics,etc! please check it out!https://t.co/EU3H2XvamK pic.twitter.com/rO2GPquy39

— Abelle✨ (@abellehayford) May 31, 2020

There’s so much more to explore in #drawingwhileblack. Check out the hashtag on Twitter and Instagram.