Ariel Dannielle (b. Atlanta, Georgia) is an African American painter who graduated from the University of West Georgia, where she received a Bachelor of Fine Arts. Drawing directly from her life, Dannielle creates large scale paintings that depict the daily experiences of young Black women. She believes in the importance of her artwork to provide new lenses through which Black womanhood can be represented, understood, and related to.
Influenced by the work of Kerry James Marshall and Alice Neel, Dannielle believes strongly in the power of portraiture. She focuses on developing personal narratives within her portraits that challenge gender and racial stereotypes. By placing herself in her paintings she opens a door to her welcomes viewers to participate in a process of introspection.
Dannielle’s work has been showcased at California African American Museum, Monique Meloche Gallery, Soco Gallery, Mint ATL, The Goat Farm, ZuCot Gallery, Dalton Gallery, Trio Contemporary Art Gallery, and Perez Museum Miami. She was a MOCA Ga Working Artist Fellow of 2019-20 and was a semi-finalist in the Bombay Sapphire Artisan Series 2018, a Artadia 2018 finalist, and has been featured in The Atlanta Journal Constitution, The Studio Museum Magazine, The Atlanta Magazine, Sorjo Magazine, mentioned in The New York Times, was featured on the cover of the CAAM summer catalog 2019, and showcased her first mural in 2022 with Living Walls x Adult Swim in Atlanta, Georgia.
Dannielle lives and works in Atlanta, Georgia.
Artist Statement
Representation matters to me. It informs the work I create. I paint with the
hope that my viewers not only feel empowered and inspired, but also seen
and understood. My work is a visual journal. Each painting is record of my
personal experiences, observations, and feelings. This acrylic archive has
enabled me to explore aspects of human frailty and vulnerability, racial and
ethnic identity, gender, sexuality, and feminism.
I aim to show my experiences in a way of thriving not just surviving. Though
seeing the history of my culture is important I do not want to be defined by
trauma, our joy should be highlighted to. I believe there is still room for more
exploration for black figures in art when it comes to representation. It is my
hope that my depiction of simple everyday experiences provides new understandings of Black womanhood and causes new connections to be made.
