Dare Coulter

Dare’s hope is to leave behind a body of work that accomplishes her primary artistic objective, which is to give life to large and unapologetic depictions of black joy. As a child, watching Patricia Polacco paint a mural in her elementary school sowed a seed for her passion for mural art. Playing on J. Seward Johnson’s “The Awakening” at Hains Point park in Washington, DC sparked the flame for monumental sculpture later in life. Seeing performances by Alvin Ailey’s dancers at the excited insistence of her mom instilled an internal bar of excellence for people whose faces looked like hers. A dear friend showed her a book of Javier Marin’s artwork while in Mexico in 2014, and making a special trip to Houston in 2018 to specifically see Marin’s works sealed the deal on his work being primarily influential in the feelings she wishes to create with her sculptural pieces. These artists set the inspiration for her larger scale objectives. Dare is the recipient of the Coretta Scott King Illustrator Award for AN AMERICAN STORY, written by Kwame Alexander.

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