Paul Collins (artist)

Paul Lamar Collins (born December 11, 1936) is one of the most accomplished American realist painters of the late twentieth century, Collins is known for his skillful use of textures, light, and attention to detail. His art is not formal or “art for art’s sake,” but very reflective of life around us, portraying people and their cultures from several parts of the world. Collins prefers the expressive capabilities of realism and the ease of comprehension for the viewer. Working in classic style, Paul Collins has earned an international reputation as an artist. Collins pierces below the outer surface of reality to express the inner being in order to capture the true essence of his subject. This self taught artist developed his skills through his own research and sincere affection for his subjects. He has earned a lasting place of prominence in the world of art for his mystifying, non traditional, real portraits of people.

His portraits reveal individual character cultivated through daily efforts to participate, contribute, and succeed in life. Willis Woods, Director of the Detroit Institute of Art reflects, “Mr. Collins’ drawings and paintings reveal a regard for the subject that is readily transferred to the viewer. There is an immediacy of contact that gives us a feeling for them as individuals possessing strength and dignity.” Collins uses the ability of the human face, body and spirit to open channels to our deepest responses. His art touches the potential and commonality in us all.

Heritage

African/American Indian/European

Childhood/Early Career

The art of Paul Collins grew out of his study, long experimentation, and determination. He was born in Muskegon, Michigan and moved to Grand Rapids at a very young age. Paul went to school in Ada and Grand Rapids Michigan, where he still lives today between various sojourns. Although he did somewhat well in school, like many students of the times, he was discouraged from taking art seriously because of its seemingly “impractical” potential as a future career. In a kind rebellion against a semester of crafts, he even failed art class. There was little in such a modest beginning to foretell that Paul would later become one of the most accomplished American realist painters of the late twentieth century.

Collins spent much of his youth growing up in a predominately black neighborhood. With few role positive models to look up to most role models he was subjected toward pimps and hustlers the road was rocky. Luckily Collins found encouragement and influence from a source that continues to be a part of his life today. Randy Brown, a highly educated artist who came from the south, persuaded Collins to pursue a career in art. Brown’s studio was near Collins’ home, and while Paul was still in school he often visited it. About this time he first tried painting in oils, a medium he now prefers most. His interest in the oil medium led him to absorb all he could read about the techniques and chemistry of paints. He tried watercolors and tempera and even experimented briefly with acrylics. Oil and pencil however remain the foundation of his technique.

After Collins graduated from high school, he and Brown started a business called Ran-Col. Their general design studio gave Collins an opportunity to develop his talent for design, layout and lettering. Large scale super-graphics were a specialty of the studio. This allowed Paul to keep his technical skills sharp. At night he would pursue his passion for fine art in his first studio which was in a cold basement, warmed up by the sounds of great Jazz and perseverance.

It was around this same time that Collins began to sell his paintings at art fairs. He was always disturbed by the stereotypical way blacks were usually portrayed with oversized lips and eyes popping out that he chose to paint large pieces depicting black faces ignited with beauty and dignity. Many people discouraged him, stating no one would buy black faces. They were wrong, he would sell out within hours, and this gave him the confidence to move forward with his dream of showing the beauty in all of humanity. He soon launched a two year sojourn to West Africa to paint a cultural series depicting a part of his ancestry.

Career

1960s and 1970s

In 1969 during his travels to West Africa, Collins studied and portrayed the Senegalese and Gambian people in their native environment. The resulting series entitled, “Black Portrait of an African Journey” was exhibited throughout Africa, Europe and the United States. The series was well received by critics. As the Detroit Free Press noted, “The immediate result of the African trip was the establishment of Collins’ name as a potent new view visual commentator on the human condition.” Many of the paintings were featured in the movie titled “Save the Children” released by Paramount in 1972. The Senegalese government named a street, Rue Monsieur Paul Collins, in his honor. Alioune Sene, Minister of Culture for the Republic of Senegal, says of Collins’ African collection, “These paintings have a gripping reality. The images convey an immense power of evocation. These images communicate something that comes from the depths of the soul of the painter, Mr. Collins, and his temperament certainly equips him with special resources and a special frame of mind. He has, in fact, succeeded here in evoking the very problems of our existence, because he was able to be very close to our reality.”

A few years later while at the United Nations conference with Unicef in New York he was invited by Chief Fools Crow from the Pine Ridge Reservation to come and live with them and portray another part of his ancestry. So in 1972, Collins relocated to the Rosebud and Pine Ridge Indian reservations of South Dakota to document the current state of the American Indian. The thirty painting series “Other voices- A Native American Tableau” opened in New York and exhibited Paris.

During this time Collins found himself acting as a diplomatic liaison between the Sioux Indians and the United States government. With the help of Michigan representative, and friend, Guy VanderJact, the Sioux and other tribes honored Collins by making him a full brother, naming him: “Bright Eagle”. According to Frank Fools Crow, Head Chief of the Oglala Sioux, Collins’ series, “Other Voices –A Native American Tableau”, “reflects…the power, tradition, and beauty of the Indian Nation, as well as their struggles for justice, freedom, and human dignity.” Collins wrote and illustrated an article about the experiences in Ebony Magazine, June 1973.

In 1975, Collins was commissioned to create an 18 x 8 ft. mural of Grand Rapids native, President Gerald R. Ford. The mural is exhibited at the Gerald R. Ford International Airport, and reveals various facets of Ford’s personal life as a President of the United States; an athlete, a father, and a husband. The mural attracted national attention and received critical acclaim for its “strong and dignified presentation of Gerald R. Ford”. The mural and individual images are published in the book, Gerald R. Ford- A Man in Perspective, (Eerdmans, 1976).

1980s

In 1981, Collins’ created the “Ford Museum Commemorative Poster” in honor of the opening of the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Museum in Grand Rapids, Michigan.

For Anheuser-Busch’s 10th Anniversary celebration, Collins was a contributor for the company’s “Great Kings of Africa”. Collins “Shaka, King of Zulus”, completed in 1976, was one of the first four portraits commissioned for the series highlighting the historical contributions of great African leaders. Collins was featured in a Budweiser TV commercial commemorating the original airing of “Roots”.

One year later, Collins premiered “The Special Olympics Collection” at the Joseph P. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C. The eight piece series remains at the center where it is on permanent exhibit. Collins spent almost three years attending international games, sketching children, assisting the coaches and participating in the medal awards ceremonies. The collection was created to find new ways to raise funds because the previous efforts were no longer sufficient.

“Great Beautiful Black Women”, a record of the journey of black women from their African origins to the present day, premiered at the Chicago Cultural Center in 1978. The unveiling was witnessed by driving forces in cultural evolution such as Rosa Parks, Wilma Rudolph, and Coretta Scott King. The collection was originally scheduled to tour for two years, but its journey was extended to five years, again due to its immense popularity. It highlighted the roles of many black women who were involved in the Civil Rights Movement that changed the United States forever.

In 1979, Collins started an ever-growing collection of works entitled “Contributions to the History of the United States of America”. The series showcases individuals who symbolize the struggle of human dignity and human rights such as Harriet Tubman, Frederick Douglass, Rosa Parks and Liberty and Justice, a mural symbolizing historical moments of the shaping of the United States. The painting depicting “Harriet Tubman’s Underground Railroad” has become a national icon. This image is used in history books, school books, children’s books and museums. Well over a million posters have been sold worldwide. Pieces of this collection are on permanent display at the Van Andel Museum and President Ford Museum in Grand Rapids, Michigan and the Museum of African American History in Detroit, Michigan.

Moving on to portray ‘ordinary’ people engaged in ‘extra’-ordinary activities, Collins completed the “America at Work” series in 1983. It was first exhibited at the Great Hall of the United States Department of Labor in Washington, D.C. The popularity of this series continues to grow, as does the collection, with new pieces gradually being added. The collection is on permanent exhibit at the Amway Grand Plaza Hotel in Grand Rapids, Michigan. It has become a highly visited attraction for visitors as well as an educational tool for students and individuals, encouraging us to acknowledge and appreciate the people who make their lives a little better each day.

In 1987, Collins’ travels took him to the Middle East. The result: “The Voices of Israel”. The images shed light upon the unique mesh of cultures and religions that comprise the traditionally-rooted, yet newly forming identity of the nation. With no political or religious affiliations, Collins captures the people of Israel on their own terms. The twenty-five piece collection toured Israel and the United States under the auspices of the Anti-Defamation League of B’nai B’rith. During his two year stay, Collins was commissioned to create a mural to celebrate the 40th anniversary of Israel by the Association for Promoting Tourism.

1989 marked Collins’ return to African soil to complete the series entitled “Kenya: In the Beginning” commissioned by the Bartek Corporation, capturing the individual qualities of the Turkana, Samburu, and Maasai tribes. The series of fifteen paintings was unveiled in Kenya and has been used in various fundraising venues. The collection hangs at the headquarters of Bartek Corporation in Ypsilanti, Michigan and Spaulding for Children in Detroit, Michigan.

1990s to present

Collins then answered the call of the Pacific Rim, moving to Omihachiman, Japan in 1994, commissioned by Amway Japan Corporation. Through his immersion in Japanese culture, he created paintings that acted as a bridge of insight for the Western eye, offering a view into the customs, rituals, and harmony of the Japanese people. The collection was unveiled in 1997 at the Megaro Gajoun Museum in Tokyo, Japan and exhibited at the Kawara Museum in Omihachiman, Japan.

In 1998 Collins was honored by a request from the International Peace Center to represent the United States of America with a sixty piece retrospective entitled “Visions”, to help reinitiate the annual International Arts Festival in Bosnia-Herzegovina. The theme of event was “Healing” an effort to erase the scars of war. Opening night at the Collegium Artisticum drew an emotional group of people that had not seen each other since the war ended. During his stay he sevred as goodwill ambassador for the arts community and invited the artists of Banja Luka to rejoin the art program in Sarajevo.

In 2000, he unveiled “Who is Key West?” a series of paintings that captures the flavor of a unique part of the United States of America. Collins knew that visitors came to enjoy the island and the unique personalities that shape the city of Key West, so he immortalize these fascinating characters in a fourteen piece series commissioned by the museum. The collection is on permanent exhibit at the Key West Museum of Art and History, voted Florida’s best Museum 2007 – Florida Magazine.

In 2004, the “Founders of a Dream Mural” was unveiled in Havana, Cuba at the Simon Bolivar Museum at the inauguration ceremonies of the International Arts Festival His work from the “Embargo of the Angels” series was also on exhibit at the National Museum of Fine Arts in Old Havana.

Collins has also designed many distinguished awards and emblems. He is the creator of the Martin Luther King, Jr. Non-Violent Peace Prize Medal commissioned by Coretta Scott King for the centers highest honor. The award has been bestowed upon such leaders as Rosa Parks, Cesar Chavez, President Jimmy Carter and Desmond Tutu. He also designed the Challenger 7 Space Shuttle logo commemorating the first U.S. woman in space, and the Presidential Fitness Mural for the President Carter Administration.

His work has been viewed not only in the most prestigious galleries on the planet, from the Pushkin Museum in Moscow to the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., but also in various libraries, schools, gymnasiums, correctional institutes, community centers and hospitals. He continues to lecture students, teaching children about other cultures through his art and life experiences. Collins has painted numerous murals on school walls and donated the reproduction rights to scholarship funds. Collins has received many awards for his efforts throughout the years, including the Mead Book Award, The Tadlow Fine Arts Award, The People’s Choice Award in Paris, The Golden Centaur of Italy, and the Ceba Award for Excellence. He was marked as one of the top twenty painters in America by the Watson-Guptill Publication. He has also served on a number of executive boards for various organizations, including the Arts Council of Grand Rapids, Michigan, The Marin Luther King, Jr. Board in Atlanta and the John F. Kennedy Center for Performing Arts in Washington D.C

He served as President of the Greater Grand Rapids Fund where he helped raise over $350,000 from various corporations to establish the “Teens Summer Jobs Program” creating over 600 summer jobs. Collins also co-chaired the Grand Rapids Youth Commonwealth Campaign with President Gerald R. Ford and Senator Glenn Steil in a campaign to restore the existing Seidman Youth Center and build an additional center across town.

Collins’ passion for portraying humanity through his own personal lens continues to drive his career. He repeatedly utilizes his gift for revealing the essence behind the life of noblemen, warriors, smugglers, children, political icons, and so-called ‘commoners’ alike. As the application of brush to canvas, Paul Collins applies determination to craft, and challenges the world to view its reflection through the eye of one of its own.

Exhibitions

American Cultural Center
Dakar, Senegal

American Cultural Center
Nairobi, Kenya

Art House
Jerusalem, Israel

Avanti Galleries
New York, New York

African - American Museum
Washington, DC

Black Arts Festival
Lagos, Nigeria

Butler Institute of Art
Youngstown, Ohio

Chicago Cultural Center
Chicago, Illinois

Children’s Museum
Indianapolis, Indiana

Christopher Newport College
Newport News, Virginia

Collegium Artisticum
Sarajevo, Bosnia

Corcoran Gallery of Art
Washington DC

Delaware State College
Dover, Delaware

DeSable Museum
Chicago, Illinois

Detroit Historical Museum
Detroit, Michigan

Dillard University
New Orleans, Louisiana

Ella Sharp Museum
Jackson, Michigan

Republic of Senegal Embassy
Washington DC

Evanston Public Library
Evanston, Illinois

Fall River Gallery
Fall River, Massachusetts

Ferris State University
Big Rapids, Michigan

Fisher Theater
Detroit, Michigan

Frederick Douglass Museum
Washington, DC

Free Library
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Four Winds Gallery
Kalamazoo, Michigan

Gallery Christine
Harbor Springs, Michigan

George Mason University
Fairfax, Virginia

Gerald R. Ford Museum
Grand Rapids, Michigan

Grand Rapids Art Museum
Grand Rapids, Michigan

Grand Rapids Public Museum
Grand Rapids, Michigan

Hackley Art Museum
Muskegon, Michigan

Holocaust Memorial Center
W. Bloomfield, Michigan

Harper Court Gallery
Chicago, Illinois

Hefner Art Gallery
Grand Rapids, Michigan

Hubie Blake Museum
Baltimore, Maryland

Hudson Brown Gallery
Chicago, Illinois

Illinois State Museum
Springfield, Illinois

J.L.Hudson Gallery
Detroit, Michigan

Jewish Cultural Center
Baltimore, Maryland

John F. Kennedy Center
Washington, D.C.

John Harvard Library
Freeport, Grand Bahamas

Joseph P. Kennedy Center
Washington, D.C.

Karuma Arts Center
Cleveland, Ohio

Key West Museum of Art & History
Key West, Florida

Kawara Museum
Omihachiman, Japan

Lakeview Center for the Arts
Peoria, Illinois

Lincoln Center- Avery Hall
New York, New York

Malcolm X College
Chicago, Illinois

Martin Luther King Jr. Center
Atlanta, Georgia

Mary Mcleod Bethune Museum
Washington, D.C.

Meguro Gajoen Museum
Tokyo, Japan

Merrill - Chase Gallery
Chicago, Illinois

Michigan State University
East Lansing, Michigan

Mitchell Indian Museum
Evanston, Illinois

Mitchell Museum
Mt. Vernon, Illinois

Mitzi E. Newhouse Theater
Lincoln Center
New York, New York

Morgan State College
Baltimore, Maryland

Museum of Fine Arts
Owensboro, Kentucky

Museum of Fine Arts
St. Petersburg, Florida

Museum of African American History
Detroit, Michigan

Museum of Science & Industry
Chicago, Illinois

Museum of Science & Industry
Los Angeles, California

National Ministry of Culture
Freeport, Grand Bahamas

National Portrait Gallery
Washington DC

Palace de la Presidence du Senegal
Dakar, Senegal

Palais des Congres
Paris, France

Palm Beach Gallery
Palm Beach, Florida

The Parthenon Museum
Nashville, Tennessee

Phoenix Civic
Phoenix, Arizona

Pink Palace
Memphis, Tennessee

Push Expo ‘72
Chicago, Illinois

Puskin Museum
Moscow, Russia

Rackham Gallery
Ann Arbor, Michigan

Ramond Duncan Gallery
Paris, France

Raymond Burr Gallery
Los Angeles, California

Saginaw Art Museum
Saginaw, Michigan

Seton Hall University
South Orange, New Jersey

Selma Burke Art Center
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

Simon Bolivar Museum
Old Havana, Cuba

Sioux Museum
Rapid City, South Dakota

Smithsonian Institution
Washington, D.C.

Southside Center
Chicago, Illinois

Spellman College
Atlanta, Georgia

Studio Museum of Harlem
New York, New York

University Gallery
Minneapolis, Minnesota

University of Michigan
Ann Arbor, Michigan

University of Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

University of Tel Aviv
Tel Aviv, Israel

University of Vermont
Burlington, Vermont

VanAndel Museum
Grand Rapids, Michigan

The White House
Washington D.C.

Xavier University
New Orleans, Louisiana

Publications

Books:

“Paths to Freedom” – National Geographic

“Passages to Freedom” – Smithsonian Institution Press

“The Paradox of Loyalty” – Third World Press

“African Americans You Need To Know”, Heritage Pub.

“Let Freedom Reign” Civil War – Capstone Press

“Alabama the River State”, Cahaba Trace Commission

“Biographical Encyclopedia of American Painters”, Dealers Choice

“Profiles of Key West”, Alama Bond

“The History of the U.A.W.”

“The History of the Amway”

“Premio Centauro d’ Oro”, Accademia Italia, Salsomaggione

“Men of Achievement”, Cambridge, England

“Print World Dictionary of Contemporary Art”, World Ink.

“Literature & Language” Level 12, McDougal Littell Pub.

“Literature & Language” Level 18, McDougal Littell Pub.

“Compassionate Capitalism”, Penguin Books New York

“Who’s Who Among Black Americans” Publishing Company

“Artists of Grand Rapids” J. Gray Sweeney – GR Art Museum

“20 Figure Painters & How They Work”, Watson-Guptill

“A Time to Heal”, Harper and Rowe Publishing

“Great Beautiful Black Women” Johnson Publishing, Chicago

“A Man In Prospective” Eerdmans Publishing, Grand Rapids

“Who’s Who in American Art”, R.R. Bowker Pub., New York

“Other Voices – A Native American Tableau” N.A.E.C.

“Black Portrait of an African Journey”, Eerdmans Publishing

“A Trail to Bear Paw Mountain” Ballantine Historical Novels

Magazines:

Accent
American Artist Cause
Cause
Crisis
Dani
Ebony
Grand Rapids Magazine
Hijatus
International Special Olympics
Insight
Jet
Jewish Gazette
La Revue Moderne
Land & Life
Le Esha
Ma’ariv
Michigan History
National Geographic
Newsweek
Parent
Palette Talk
People
Scholastic News
Sol Y Son
Take Pride
Time
West Michigan Magazine

Film:

“Visions” a retrospective by Paul Collins Sarajevo, Bosnia – Herzegovina, BBC

“Voices of Israel” Paul Collins Sunday Morning Show, CBS

“Paul Collins in Israel” Israeli Films Inc.

“Compassionate Capitalism” Intaglio Productions

Interview – Paul Collins The Larry King Show

“Save the Children” Paramount Pictures

“Free of Eden” Hallmark Films

“American History – Underground Railroad” Traige Productions, History Channel

“Foundations of Courage – A Cry to Freedom” BET

“Break Me My Bounds: - The Paul Laurence Dunbar Story” Northern Light Production

“Kingpin” NBC Studios

“Crossings” Maryland Pub. Television

“Reginald F. Lewis Museum” Baltimore, MD

References

• "Grand Rapids History & Special Collections". GRAND RAPIDS PUBLIC LIBRARY. http://www.grpl.org/wiki/images/6/6f/269.pdf. Retrieved 3 April 2010. 

A Time to Heal, Gerald R. Ford, Harper & Row
Artists of Grand Rapids 1840–1980 - J. Gray Sweeney Grand Rapids Art Museum
Artists in Michigan – 1900–1976, Wayne State Press
Black Portrait of an African Journey – Eerman Publishing
Charles Wright African American Museum
Crisis Magazine, July/August, 1999
American Artist Magazine
Ebony Magazine, October 1971, June 1973, February 1994, April 2006
Executive Japan, June 1994
Janet L. Martineau – Times news service
Jet magazine
Insight Magazine, May 1, 1989
Michigan History, Oct. 2004
Newsweek Magazine, Oct. 11, 1976
Palette Talk # 47
Profiles of Key West, Alma Bond, Poho Press
20 Figure Painters and How They Work – Susan Meyers, Watson Guptill publications
Key West Museum of Art & History