Khari Turner is a Milwaukee‑born, New York–based contemporary artist whose work intricately weaves together abstraction, figuration, and materiality to explore identity, memory, and the deeper histories carried in water. Turner’s practice is deeply informed by his upbringing along Lake Michigan and the complex cultural landscapes of American cities, shaping a visual language that investigates Black experience, ancestral history, and the elemental forces that bind us.Turner graduated with an MFA from Columbia University in 2021, following a BFA from Austin Peay State University. His paintings are distinguished by their innovative use of materials: Turner sources water from bodies of water with personal or historical significance—including oceans, rivers, and lakes—and incorporates this water directly into his pigments or onto the canvas, allowing chemical reactions and chance to shape his surfaces. This approach reflects his belief that water carries both physical and symbolic memory, connecting the body, history, and environment.His work often combines abstract expanses with suggestive figurative elements—frequently features such as lips and noses—without literal representation of eyes, encouraging viewers to engage with presence and absence, visibility and history. Turner’s paintings meditate on themes of resilience, beauty, and collective experience, with materials like sand, ink, charcoal, and organic pigments enhancing texture and narrative depth.Turner’s work has been featured in significant exhibitions including solo shows at Ross‑Sutton Gallery in New York, international presentations at the 59th Venice Biennale, and a solo museum exhibition at the Museum of Wisconsin Art. He has participated in numerous residencies and his pieces are included in several public and private collections globally. 

Khari Turner

American

Main

Artist

Printer

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Red Tides Moon Glow