by Eva Brander Blackhawk

Shytheartist, also known as Jalen Whitner, is a Chicago based collage artist whose work is featured on Artists Untold. Many of Whitner’s pieces include floral detail over faces for a unique, anonymous portrait style. We messaged Whitner to talk about how his art and fashion have influenced each other along with how showcases black power in his work.  

CUFS: What does fashion mean to you and how does your art inform your personal style?

SHYTHEARTIST: Fashion to me is linked to personality. My personality is one way to define who I am as a person and fashion is a way for others get an idea of who I am as soon as they see me. That is why fashion is just as important to me as art. Both of them are representations of my creativity and personality. My art and fashion go hand and hand. I have so many colorful shoes, with hats and clothes to match every single one. They all flow together to create one color palette. The same goes for my art. So many different styles, with so many different colors and materials forming different color palettes.

CUFS: I see a lot of inspiration from florals and portraiture, could you tell me more about that?

SHYTHEARTIST: Since I was a kid, I’ve always enjoyed flowers. My dad used to take me to buy flowers for my mom as a kid. There’s something so elegant and beautiful about flowers. The different shapes and colors remind me of the diversity in society. Every person is growing and has beauty, so I try to make them intertwine in a way. I tend to cut off faces and use flowers to show that it’s not about the face, but what is inside.

CUFS: Your art seems to be an homage to black greatness, whether that’s in admiration of your idols or a celebration of the beauty of black skin. Could you tell me more about the ways your art, identities, and community overlap?

SHYTHEARTIST: I think in our community we are taught that black skin is beautiful, but that isn’t how everyone in the world views it. With everything that is going on in the world, with racism and police violence, it’s refreshing to create black people in a positive light. It’s great for people to see black people represented in such a beautiful light. It could be celebrities that our culture loves or just a random woman that someone can identify with. Either way, it’s always good to show us in a positive light.

CUFS: Where do you see your art going?

SHYTHEARTIST: I think my art is progressing to an abstract style of collage than ever before. Because I am doing collages by hand now, it forces me to be more creative and really think about what I’m doing. When I do digital collages it’s easy to change and make edits. When it’s by hand it’s much harder to change ideas. It forces me to have a distinct vision. I also see myself doing more celebrity art than floral art. More people can relate to them in my opinion. Especially when it comes to musical artist. 

CUFS: What do you think is the relationship between art, healing, and social change?

SHYTHEARTIST: I think it starts in that order. Art allows me and others to heal from pain. Seeing the beauty in something created can be quite healing. Healing can lead to change. Change within yourself, can influence social change.For example; when I hear about situations that don’t get a lot of media coverage, I’ll create an art piece to bring awareness to it. I hope something in my art piece will touch someone to see things in a different light and possibly bring change.

From @shytheartist on instagram