Conrad Egyir

Conrad Egyir is known for his bold, graphic portraits of Black individuals that deliver the immediate visual punch of Pop art. Portrayed like royalty and other canonized icons, his subjects preside over canvases that are shaped like large-scale stamps, postcards, and perforated notebook pages. Egyir experienced a meteoric rise in the art world after receiving his MFA from the Cranbrook Academy of Art, garnering interest from collectors; singer Beyoncé also included a print of the artist’s work in her 2020 visual album Black Is King. Egyir also had his first solo museum exhibition at the Museum of Contemporary Art Detroit in 2020,where portraits on view embodied the artist’s visions of the self-liberated citizens of a better, imagined world. Another solo show followed in 2021 at the Institute of Contemporary Art San José. Informed by West African iconography, religious motifs, and pop culture, Egyir explores notions around identity politics, migration, and community.

B. 1989 in Accra, Ghana; Lives and works in Detroit, MI.