Donald Black Jr. was born in Cleveland, Ohio in 1980. His formal art education began in the fourth grade at the Cleveland School of the Arts. His early years at CSA afforded him the opportunity to experiment with multiple art forms including dance and instrumental music. However, it was not long before he unearthed his passion for photography. Driven by the unique properties of the medium and the voice that it afforded him, he decided to concentrate solely on receiving instruction in this area. He furthered his pursuit of photography at Ohio University’s School of Visual Communication in Athens, Ohio. There he studied commercial photography and obtained his Bachelor of Science in Commercial Photography. In 2002, he was awarded the Kodak Scholarship for Outstanding Photographer at Ohio University. He was the first-ever African American to receive this prestigious award.
Shortly after college, Black relocated to New York City where he began to extend his craft into the realm of fine art photography. It was during this time that he established a concrete vision for himself as an artist and a sense of purpose in his work: to portray a more accurate and positive image of black culture, to provide educational experiences around teaching others about urban culture within the African American community, and to teach art as both a form of personal expression and a marketable, technical skill. He developed workshops and mentoring programs that would teach young people photography and give those persons (particularly children) with limited access to art an instrument for claiming their own identity.
Black was eager to find the most viable place to continue his personal and artistic mission. In June of 2007, he returned to his native home of Cleveland, Ohio: the very center of his heart and the foundation of his inspiration.
Donald Black Jr. has received many distinguished awards for his photography, including the 2007 International Nikon Award, 3rd Place, for his work entitled “Self Imprisonment.” His work has been displayed in multiple exhibitions throughout Northeast Ohio, New York, NY, and Atlanta, GA. He was also included in the 2006 exhibition Silent Voices, Loud Echoes at the African American Museum in Philadelphia, PA.
Black is imprinting his signature upon the world, beginning with the opening of his gallery Warrior of Light in November of 2007, on the very street where he grew up as a child. Black is actively pursuing collaborative endeavors with the Cleveland Public Library and the Cleveland Metropolitan School District. However the very crux of his efforts remains to create inspiring opportunities through his work that will inspire social change.
