My artistic practice is deeply engaged with exploring Black identity, grief, and the complexities of being a third-culture individual and first-generation artist. Throughout my work, I seek to create a visual language that captures the nuanced realities of navigating these intersecting themes.
As a child of Black immigrants in the United States, I often find myself at the crossroads of multiple identities— cultural, historical, and personal. My art emerges from this space of intersectionality, where the tensions between these identities are both a source of challenge and inspiration. I use painting and mixed media to delve into these tensions, employing texture, color, and form to express the layered emotions of loss, memory, and belonging.
Grief is a central motif in my work, reflecting both personal experiences and the collective grief within the Black diaspora. My large-scale paintings function as memorials and affirmations, capturing the weight of history, while celebrating the resilience and beauty inherent in Black life. Through these works, I aim to address the unspoken emotional labor that accompanies the Black experience, offering a space for reflection and healing.
Grief is a central motif in my work, reflecting both personal experiences and the collective grief within the Black diaspora. My large-scale paintings function as memorials and affirmations, capturing the weight of history, while celebrating the resilience and beauty inherent in Black life. Through these works, I aim to address the unspoken emotional labor that accompanies the Black experience, offering a space for reflection and healing.
A significant focus of practice is the “first-generation“ experience— what it means to be the first in a family to navigate new cultural and social landscapes. I aim to make visible the often invisible struggles and triumphs of this journey, highlighting the unique challenges and perspectives of being a trailblazer in unfamiliar territory.
In embracing the fluidity and complexity of identity, my work acknowledges that identity is not a fixed state, but a dynamic process of becoming. By creating data with broader social teams, I contribute to the ongoing dialogue about identity, migration, and the human condition. Ultimately, I want to offer a space for connection, reflection, and understanding through the visual narrative I create.
Jahniah Kum (b. 1997, Albany, NY) received her A.S. in Fine arts from Hudson Valley Community College(2020), B.A. in Studio Art from the University at Albany (2023), and is currently an MFA Painting candidate at the Maryland Institute College of Art in Baltimore, Maryland. Kum Has already been included in various group shows including the Annual Mohawk Hudson Regional Show held in upstate New York. Upcoming, she will have her debut solo show at the Spare Room Gallery in Baltimore, Maryland. Kum Currently lives and works in Baltimore, Maryland.