Patrick Earl Hammie (born November 23, 1981) is an American visual artist and educator best known for his large-scale portrait and

nude Nudity is the state of being in which a human is without clothing. The loss of body hair was one of the physical characteristics that marked the biological evolution of modern humans from their hominin ancestors. Adaptations related to h ...

paintings of allegorical subjects. Hammie's paintings emphasize movement, color, and sensuality, drawing from

art history Art history is the study of aesthetic objects and visual expression in historical and stylistic context. Traditionally, the discipline of art history emphasized painting, drawing, sculpture, architecture, ceramics and decorative arts; yet today ...

and visual culture to examine ideas related to cultural identity, masculinity, beauty, and

sexuality Human sexuality is the way people experience and express themselves sexually. This involves biological, psychological, physical, erotic, emotional, social, or spiritual feelings and behaviors. Because it is a broad term, which has varied ...

. Hammie lives in

Champaign Champaign ( ) is a city in Champaign County, Illinois, United States. The population was 88,302 at the 2020 census. It is the tenth-most populous municipality in Illinois and the fourth most populous city in Illinois outside the Chicago metropo ...

, where he currently works as an

Associate Professor Associate professor is an academic title with two principal meanings: in the North American system and that of the ''Commonwealth system''. Overview In the ''North American system'', used in the United States and many other countries, it is a ...

at the

University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (U of I, Illinois, University of Illinois, or UIUC) is a public land-grant research university in Illinois in the twin cities of Champaign and Urbana. It is the flagship institution of the University ...

Early life and education

Hammie was born in

New Haven, Connecticut New Haven is a city in the U.S. state of Connecticut. It is located on New Haven Harbor on the northern shore of Long Island Sound in New Haven County, Connecticut and is part of the New York City metropolitan area. With a population of 134,02 ...

, and raised in

West Haven West or Occident is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from east and is the direction in which the Sun sets on the Earth. Etymology The word "west" is a Germanic word passed into some R ...

, to mother Carolyn (née Harrison), a retired switchboard operator, and father Ervin Hammie Jr., a

Vietnam War veteran A Vietnam veteran is a person who served in the armed forces of participating countries during the Vietnam War. The term has been used to describe veterans who served in the armed forces of South Vietnam, the United States Armed Forces, and oth ...

, foreman, and gravedigger. As a child, Hammie took up martial arts and was nationally ranked in his category by the North American Sports Karate Association. He developed an interest in visual arts when he began drawing characters from comic books and television shows. Hammie's parents supported him in both areas, bringing him to karate tournaments and encouraging him to expand his drawings to include still lives and landscapes. At age nine, Hammie relocated with his parents to

Hartsville, South Carolina Hartsville is the largest city in Darlington County, South Carolina, United States. It was chartered on December 11, 1891. The population was 7,764 at the 2010 census. Hartsville was chosen as an All-America City in 1996 and again in 2016. Harts ...

. His parents separated when he was thirteen and he returned with his father to Connecticut to attend

West Haven High School West Haven High School is a secondary school located in West Haven, Connecticut, which educates students in grades 9–12. The mascot of West Haven is the Blue Devil. Administration and campus As of July 1, 2009, the school principal was P ...

, where he played football and performed in the choir. Hammie's father died in 1999, shortly after Hammie's high school graduation. After high school, Hammie attended

Coker College Coker University is a private university in Hartsville, South Carolina. It was founded in 1908 and is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools. Coker's sports teams, nicknamed the Cobras, compete in NCAA Division II. Histo ...

and studied studio art, where he received a BA in 2004. Hammie freelanced as a portrait painter for two years before returning to New England to study at the

University of Connecticut The University of Connecticut (UConn) is a public land-grant research university in Storrs, Connecticut, a village in the town of Mansfield. The primary 4,400-acre (17.8 km2) campus is in Storrs, approximately a half hour's drive from Hart ...

, where he received his MFA in 2008.

Career

''Imperfect Colossi''

Hammie's artistic direction began to take shape in 2007, when he considered his reaction to his father's untimely death in 1999. According to Hammie, “I’d become emotionally reserved, which led me to question the source of this behavior and art’s role in representing and nurturing such masculine traits.” This reflection inspired Hammie; he painted his un-idealized brown body as the antithesis of the hard-bodied heroes of

Old Master In art history, "Old Master" (or "old master")Old Masters De ...

imagery. In his 2007 painting, ''Protuberance'', Hammie portrays himself pulling and tugging at his bulky loose flesh, laying the groundwork for his first project ''Imperfect Colossi''. This series of paintings and drawings visualize Hammie's effort to reshape himself and propose the possibility of a new

ideal Ideal may refer to: Philosophy * Ideal (ethics), values that one actively pursues as goals * Platonic ideal, a philosophical idea of trueness of form, associated with Plato Mathematics * Ideal (ring theory), special subsets of a ring considere ...

, one positioned more as a work in progress than an achievable end. On April 12, 2008 Hammie premiered selections from ''Imperfect Colossi'' at the William Benton Museum of Art. On May 20, Hammie displayed selections at Kathleen Cullen Gallery in New York City. In May, he was awarded the Alice C. Cole ‘42

Fellow A fellow is a concept whose exact meaning depends on context. In learned or professional societies, it refers to a privileged member who is specially elected in recognition of their work and achievements. Within the context of higher education ...

ship and a 12-month

residency Residency may refer to: * Domicile (law), the act of establishing or maintaining a residence in a given place ** Permanent residency, indefinite residence within a country despite not having citizenship * Residency (medicine), a stage of postgrad ...

from

Wellesley College Wellesley College is a private women's liberal arts college in Wellesley, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1870 by Henry and Pauline Durant as a female seminary, it is a member of the original Seven Sisters Colleges, an unofficial g ...

, which supported the creation of new works to be exhibited at the end of the residency.

''Equivalent Exchange''

Beginning in December 2008, Hammie painted a series of

self-portrait A self-portrait is a representation of an artist that is drawn, painted, photographed, or sculpted by that artist. Although self-portraits have been made since the earliest times, it is not until the Early Renaissance in the mid-15th century tha ...

s perched atop stools and unstable pedestals. Hammie was inspired by images of America's first black president's authoritative pose at the lectern, and their connection to the visual legacy of the enslaved black body on the auction block. The painting ''Recognition'' from 2009 depicts a backlit hulking man sitting atop a stool, turning his body to peer out at the viewer. The figure's face is obscured by a shadow that interrupts the viewer's

gaze In critical theory, sociology, and psychoanalysis, the gaze (French ''le regard''), in the philosophical and figurative sense, is an individual's (or a group's) awareness and perception of other individuals, other groups, or oneself. The concept ...

. Hammie pictures a figure in the process of confronting the heritage of a black male body, and on the verge of moving from objecthood to subjecthood. On April 1, 2009 Hammie debuted the project ''Equivalent Exchange'' in his first solo exhibition at the Jewett Art Gallery at Wellesley College. On August 16, 2009, Hammie accepted a faculty position in the School of Art + Design at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. On January 11, 2010 Hammie displayed selections from ''Imperfect Colossi'' and ''Equivalent Exchange'' in a solo exhibition at Stewart Center Gallery at

Purdue University Purdue University is a public land-grant research university in West Lafayette, Indiana, and the flagship campus of the Purdue University system. The university was founded in 1869 after Lafayette businessman John Purdue donated land and money ...

John Michael Kohler Art Center

In July 2011, Hammie left his studio to complete the arts/industry residency program at the

John Michael Kohler Arts Center The John Michael Kohler Arts Center is an independent, not-for-profit contemporary art museum and performing arts complex located in Sheboygan, Wisconsin, United States.Kohler Company Kohler Co., founded in 1873 by John Michael Kohler, is an American manufacturing company based in Kohler, Wisconsin. Kohler is best known for its plumbing products, but the company also manufactures furniture, cabinetry, tile, engines, and g ...

to create drawings, casts, and sculptures of

calla lilies Calla lily is a common name of several members of the family Araceae. It may refer to: * ''Calla palustris'' * ''Zantedeschia'' generally ** ''Zantedeschia aethiopica ''Zantedeschia aethiopica'', commonly known as calla lily and arum lily, is a ...

and his body.

''Significant Other''

Hammie returned to his studio from his Kohler residency in September 2011 and began production on paintings that question inherited visual expectations of historically marginalized people, and work to reorient how meaning is made around those bodies. Encouraged by the communal environment at Kohler, Hammie worked with studio assistants and collaborated with art historians and museum directors toward his “conceptual sequel to ''Imperfect Colossi''.” According to Hammie, traditional representations of women and

people of color The term "person of color" ( : people of color or persons of color; abbreviated POC) is primarily used to describe any person who is not considered "white". In its current meaning, the term originated in, and is primarily associated with, the U ...

in art, and present effects of institutional exclusion of minority groups from authorship of their cultural and political narratives informed this direction. ''Significant Other'', Hammie's third project, opened with select works on July 26, 2013 at Greymatter Gallery in Milwaukee. In contrast to his previous project, which showed a minimalist depiction of a single male figure, ''Significant Other'' presents male and female figures locked in a physical exchange. Paintings such as ''Aureole'' from 2013 feature a commanding woman rotating a reclined man's body to his side, baring his nakedness and inspecting his state of consciousness. Hammie introduces the woman as an active authority and relieves the man from ''macho'' performance, constructing moments where traditionally

masculine Masculinity (also called manhood or manliness) is a set of attributes, behaviors, and roles associated with men and boys. Masculinity can be theoretically understood as socially constructed, and there is also evidence that some behaviors con ...

and

feminine Femininity (also called womanliness) is a set of attributes, behaviors, and roles generally associated with women and girls. Femininity can be understood as socially constructed, and there is also some evidence that some behaviors considered fe ...

strengths are conflated in the woman's actions while the man's body and its classic signifier of power—the

penis A penis (plural ''penises'' or ''penes'' () is the primary sexual organ that male animals use to inseminate females (or hermaphrodites) during copulation. Such organs occur in many animals, both vertebrate and invertebrate, but males do n ...

—is vulnerable to public critique. On February 7, 2014 Hammie displayed selections from ''Significant Other'' in a solo exhibition at Porter Butts Gallery at the

University of Wisconsin-Madison A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, the ...

. On March 22, Hammie's ''Bust of an American Man arly 21st century' was displayed in the John Michael Kohler Arts Center's 40th anniversary retrospective, which featured 40 years of collected works by arts/industry residents. On August 16, 2015 Hammie was promoted to the rank of Associate Professor at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. On February 25, 2016 Hammie displayed selections from ''Significant Other'' in a solo exhibition at Kruger Gallery in Chicago.

''Other Works''

One of Hammie's portraits was featured in the exhibition, What's Inside ''Her Never Dies... A Black Woman's Legacy'' at Yeleen Gallery for their

Art Basel Miami Art Basel is a for-profit, privately owned and managed, international art fair staged annually in Basel, Switzerland; Miami Beach; Hong Kong and from 2022, Paris. Art Basel works in collaboration with the host city's local institutions to help ...

showcase in January 2016.

Art

Hammie's use of scale, expression, and emotive subject matter recall the painterly gestures of the

Baroque The Baroque (, ; ) is a style of architecture, music, dance, painting, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished in Europe from the early 17th century until the 1750s. In the territories of the Spanish and Portuguese empires including t ...

and Romantic periods. His style has been compared to that of

Rubens Sir Peter Paul Rubens (; ; 28 June 1577 – 30 May 1640) was a Flemish artist and diplomat from the Duchy of Brabant in the Southern Netherlands (modern-day Belgium). He is considered the most influential artist of the Flemish Baroque traditio ...

. Hammie's oeuvre is defined by his ongoing engagement with the history of painting, in particular his use of

allegory As a literary device or artistic form, an allegory is a narrative or visual representation in which a character, place, or event can be interpreted to represent a hidden meaning with moral or political significance. Authors have used allegory th ...

to implicate power structures, question systems of racism and sexism, and examine how male artists have imagined the nude. Since debuting in 2009, Hammie has dedicated his career to traditional figurative painting, investigating the pictorial, technical, and narrative practices of

Western art The art of Europe, or Western art, encompasses the history of visual art in Europe. European prehistoric art started as mobile Upper Paleolithic rock and cave painting and petroglyph art and was characteristic of the period between the Paleol ...

, producing portraits that disturb the existing canon and examine critical aspects of gender and race today. Hammie works primarily in a studio, painting from life and photographs. Hammie's subjects are often himself and the people in his life: friends, family, and fellow artists. Music is central to his creative practice. He cites Bjork,

Oddisee Amir Mohamed el Khalifa (born February 24, 1985), better known by his stage name Oddisee, is an American rapper and record producer from Washington, D.C. He is one third of rap trio Diamond District. He was also part of the Low Budget Crew. He is ...

, and

Daft Punk Daft Punk were a French electronic music duo formed in 1993 in Paris by Thomas Bangalter and Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo. Widely regarded as one of the most influential acts in dance music history, they achieved popularity in the late 1990s as p ...

as musical groups he listens to while working.

Awards

Hammie has been awarded prizes and grants from

Alliance of Artists Communities The Alliance of Artists Communities is an international non-profit arts organization. Founded in 1991 following a pilot program and recommendation through the MacArthur Foundation, the organization is focused on advocacy, promotion, and cultiv ...

with the

Joyce Foundation The Joyce Foundation is a non-operating private foundation based in Chicago, Illinois. As of 2021, it had assets of approximately $1.1 billion and distributes $50 million in grants per year and primarily funds organizations in the Great Lakes re ...

Indianapolis Art Center The Indianapolis Art Center is an art center located in Indianapolis, Indiana, United States. The Center, founded in 1934 by the Works Project Administration during the Great Depression as the Indianapolis Art League, is located along the White ...

, Tanne Foundation, University of Illinois, Wellesley College, and Zhou B Art Center.

Collections

Hammie's work is held in permanent collections including

Del Mar College Del Mar College (DMC) is a Public college, public community college in Corpus Christi, Texas. Founded in 1935, DMC encompasses two primary campuses and one campus annex with combined physical assets of more than $99 million. As defined by the T ...

, John Michael Kohler Art Center, JPMorgan Chase Art Collection, Kohler Company, Kinsey Institute at Indiana University, and the William Benton Museum of Art.

Influences

Hammie has stated on several occasions visual artists that have influenced his artistic career. He cites

Francis Bacon Francis Bacon, 1st Viscount St Alban (; 22 January 1561 – 9 April 1626), also known as Lord Verulam, was an English philosopher and statesman who served as Attorney General and Lord Chancellor of England. Bacon led the advancement of both ...

, Luís Caballero,

Caravaggio Michelangelo Merisi (Michele Angelo Merigi or Amerighi) da Caravaggio, known as simply Caravaggio (, , ; 29 September 1571 – 18 July 1610), was an Italian painter active in Rome for most of his artistic life. During the final four years of hi ...

Renée Cox Renee Cox (born October 16, 1960) is a Jamaican-American artist, photographer, lecturer, political activist and curator. Her work is considered part of the feminist art movement in the United States. Among the best known of her provocative works ...

Marlene Dumas Marlene Dumas (born 3 August 1953) is a South African artist and painter currently based in the Netherlands. Life and work Dumas was born in 1953 in Cape Town, South Africa and grew up in Kuils River in the Western Cape, where her father had ...

Lucian Freud Lucian Michael Freud (; 8 December 1922 – 20 July 2011) was a British painter and draughtsman, specialising in figurative art, and is known as one of the foremost 20th-century English portraitists. He was born in Berlin, the son of Jewis ...

Leon Golub Leon Golub (January 23, 1922 – August 8, 2004) was an American painter. He was born in Chicago, Illinois, where he also studied, receiving his Bachelor of Arts, BA at the University of Chicago in 1942, and his Bachelor of Fine Arts, BFA and Ma ...

Jacob Lawrence Jacob Armstead Lawrence (September 7, 1917 – June 9, 2000) was an American painter known for his portrayal of African-American historical subjects and contemporary life. Lawrence referred to his style as "dynamic cubism", although by his own ...

Robert Mapplethorpe Robert Michael Mapplethorpe (; November 4, 1946 – March 9, 1989) was an American photographer, best known for his black-and-white photographs. His work featured an array of subjects, including celebrity portraits, male and female nudes, self-p ...