Joseph Graves Jr.
October 13 - January 8
Airport Office Building Lobby, Airport Office Building Lobby
Art at Den
October 13 - January 8
Airport Office Building Lobby, Airport Office Building Lobby
Joseph Graves Jr. is a Denver-based contemporary artist and art educator whose work reimagines the people, histories and visual language of the American West. Born and raised in Colorado, Graves works primarily in acrylic and mixed media, combining bold color, abstraction, pattern, maps and figurative imagery. His work has been exhibited at the Arvada Center for the Arts and Humanities, the Governor’s Residence at the Boettcher Mansion and the Daum Museum of Contemporary Art, among other venues. His artwork has also been acquired by the Denver Public Library for its permanent collection. In addition to his studio practice, Graves is a visual arts educator at Denver South High School and was recognized as a Kehinde Wiley Art Teacher of the Year.
You can find more of his work and story online at www.josephgravesjr.com and on Instagram at @artbyjoseph_graves_jr.
Joseph Graves Jr.’s work expands the traditional image of the American West by placing Black cowboys, cowgirls, Black Native people and overlooked historical figures at the center of its story. His connection to the West is also personal, inspired in part by his grandfather, Charles Joseph “Daddy Joe” Graves, a World War II veteran and horse trainer whose life helped shape Graves’ understanding of Black Western identity. Through expressive color, layered maps, pattern, abstraction and contemporary portraiture, Graves explores history, memory, freedom, resilience and belonging. His paintings draw attention to figures and communities too often absent from traditional Western imagery while celebrating the style, humanity and everyday lives of the people who helped shape the West. Rather than presenting Black presence in Western history as an exception, Graves’ work asserts it as an essential part of the American story.
