Jordan Casteel’s vibrant pieces display the world of personal connections between individuals Casteel has met or shares a personal connection to. Casteel specialises in large scale oil paintings that depict her subjects in a “larger-than-life” and grandiose sense. Her subjects are surrounded by details that reflect aspects of their character and personal life— displaying insights into their psychological and social experiences. By focusing on scenes of “the ordinary”, Casteel offers perspectives on race, gender, and current social climates fueled by her studies in sociology and anthropology. The artist received her BA from the Agnes Scott College and her MFA in Painting and Printmaking from the Yale School of Art. Additionally, she has displayed her work in several exhibitions, including her Within Reach solo exhibition at the New Museum in New York. Through her extended diction of African American men within her work, Casteel aims to represent questions regarding masculinity, class, and displacement. Through the subject’s direct gaze out towards the audience, an interaction between the perceived perspective of the subject and the themes their perspective represents can be experienced between the art, artist, and audience.

Work Below, Respectively: Magnolia, 2022| Direct Response, 2021| God Bless the Child, 2019| African Marigold, 2022