Whether he’s creating
a 6-inch digital painting or a mural on the side of a building, Yusuf Lateef
elevates everyday objects to art.
“Part of my challenge is how to find art in the mundane,”
he said. “How can I find moments of clarity while painting a wall or hanging
drywall?”
His work, displayed at YusufLateef.com,
shows the fruits of that challenge.
A surrealist elephant, the overlapping faces of George Washington and Frederick
Douglass, and digital edits of paintings by other artists stand alongside
abstract shapes and play on faces and forms. It’s a collection he’ll share at
American Frame’s showroom and gallery February 5-28.
“I’m inspired by
something every day,” Lateef, 40, said. “It could be something as simple as a
conversation or a billboard I’m passing.”
Originally from
Skokie, Illinois, Lateef has been creating art as long as he can remember. He
saw it as a possible career path during middle school. After earning a BFA in
painting and drawing from the Columbus College of Art and Design, he moved to
Toledo, where he teaches Fundamentals of Art Studio Technology at the University
of Toledo.
“It provides a space
for students from any major to learn the importance of tools, the body in
relation to tools, and being comfortable with learning new skill sets,” he said
of the course. “I’m of the belief that art is the practice of mastery, no
matter the material.”
And Lateef has put
that belief in motion, creating art in a variety of mediums, including more
than 16 murals throughout the Toledo area. One, at the corner of Detroit and
Dorr streets, was sponsored by Junction Neighborhood, Art Corner Toledo and
United Way as part of a multi-mural project by various area artists.
“Murals are a symbolic way to express the beauty that can sometimes be hidden within a neighborhood,” he said. “My hope is that murals inspire others to act and activate the spaces that they inhabit.”
And soon, his art may be somewhere else - on his fans’ backs. He’s working with artists Chris and Elliott Rogers to produce a line of jackets and other clothing items that feature his paintings.
“The way to really ‘see’ art is to live with it,” Lateef said. “I want to encourage folks to buy the work and take it home so that they can be a part of it.”
Lateef said he loves working with American Frame because
of our customer service and focus on DIY framing.
“They seem like a family over there,” he said. “They’re super helpful and what I especially like is their willingness to show you how to do things on your own.”
He’s also passionate about Radiant City, a creative collective and consulting group he co-founded with musician Ben Cohen and poet Akili Jackson. Radiant City uses visual art, music, and spoken word poetry to encourage leadership and positive communication skills in youth. The group has launched projects at Toledo School for the Arts, the Toledo Arts Commission’s Young Artists at Work program, The Toledo Museum of Art and Toledo Public Schools, as well as juvenile detention centers in Michigan.
“Life is tough,”
Lateef said. “So, if we can provide symbolic and real, tangible legacies,
then maybe our work can have a lasting, positive effect.”
“They seem like a family over there,” he said. “They’re super helpful and what I especially like is their willingness to show you how to do things on your own.”
He’s also passionate about Radiant City, a creative collective and consulting group he co-founded with musician Ben Cohen and poet Akili Jackson. Radiant City uses visual art, music, and spoken word poetry to encourage leadership and positive communication skills in youth. The group has launched projects at Toledo School for the Arts, the Toledo Arts Commission’s Young Artists at Work program, The Toledo Museum of Art and Toledo Public Schools, as well as juvenile detention centers in Michigan.
With Radiant City,
Lateef just finished a project with Fremont High School, where he helped
students write and record a song over three days. The piece, “The Hope We
Need,” details the students’ vision for their community. Listen
to it on YouTube.
Learn more about Radiant City at RadiantCityArts.org.
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