Art. Nina Chanel Abney. Enviroments. Art. Hip-hop.

by superselected · Art, Nina Chanel Abney, Painting · 23 Sep 2014

Nina Chanel Abney, Black Artists, African-American Artists

Originally from Chicago, but now living and working in New York City, Nina Chanel Abney creates diverse, complicated environments in a bright, bold color palette. While much of her work draws comparison to Picasso with an extra touch of genre-specific surrealism, the artist is heavily influenced by music, particularly hip-hop.

She talked about how hip-hop has influenced her music and how music and art are connected in an interview with Tanekeya Word for Saint Heron,

I have been drawing since I was a child. I wanted to be a cartoonist, but I started painting once I found an old paint set in the basement that belonged to my mom. I don’t know how old I was when I was introduced to rap, pretty young. My favorite rapper was Kool Moe Dee. Then I, of course, became a fan of Salt n Pepa, MC Lyte, and Queen Latifah. But, I guess that stuff was more PG. The early 90s were the best! Bone Thugs N Harmony’s Creepin on Ah Come Up: I can’t tell you how many times I played “Thuggish Ruggish Bone.” I remember hiding the insert to Snoop’s Doggystyle tape from my mom. In high school I would have parties where we would gather to watch movies like Master P’s “I’m Bout It.” I was into anything that came from Cash Money; I remember loving their CD cases because they were bright neon colors. Not too long ago, I watched Kool Moe Dees “Wild Wild West” video on YouTube. I couldn’t believe how ancient it looked. The evolution of rap and hip hop music has been tremendous.

…

It really depends on my mood, or what I am working on. But I mostly listen to jazz, rap, or R&B while I’m painting. Occasionally, I listen to “The Read” podcast. I’m currently shuffling through the following CDs: Pusha T’s My Name Is My Name, K. Michelle’s Rebellious Soul, Drake’s Nothing Was The Same, Kanye West’s Yeezus, Robert Glasper’s Black Radio 2, MMG’s Self Made Vol. 3, Gucci Mane’s Diary of a Trap God, Chella H’s The Realest Bitch In It, Soulja Boy’s Loud, and Lil Kim’s Hardcore.