I previously curated a list of amazing photographers you should follow on the popular photo-sharing platform, Instagram. As I stated then, the mobile app is still a f**king lot! But outside of the shade, tummy tea selling and thirst traps, you can’t deny how great of an outlet it is for creatives to showcase their fantastic work.

The following are 13 incredible artists on Instagram that are doing the damn thang, and deserve your follow — like, today!

1. Mark Jason Weston (@markjasonweston)

Mark Jason Weston is a Jamaican collage artist residing in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. His work is slick, clean, focused — simply, stupendously gorgeous. His pieces also seem to carry a lot of brain. If you look at the unusual creations long enough, you might see that many are packing powerful messages.

2. Jacolby Satterwhite (@jacolbysatt)

Based in New York City, Jacolby Satterwhite is an artist that combines several different mediums to make things that are unique and fresh. But by looking at his Instagram, if someone were to ask how to describe the creative, I would say that he is the art. Every post is him creating in some way, and some of his creations (like, a green-screened gay cruising adventure in 1980s Central Park) require you to perform a bit. Multimedia for sure, and often interactive.

3. BrooklynDolly (@brooklyndolly)

BrooklynDolly (whose real name is Erin Robinson) is an illustrator who, as her name explicitly hints, is also based in New York City. Her work is warm, inviting and very black. Recently, one of her illustrations was featured in the New York Times.

4. Jon Moody (@thejonmoody)

Jon Moody is an Atlanta based painter that creates works of art of notable people, watershed moments and, basically, anything he’s commissioned to realize through his unique vision. His paintings have been featured several times in Lee Daniels' TV shows Empire and Star, with his signature style standing out on the iconic sets.

His body is a work of art, too. And he’s definitely not afraid to flaunt it.

5. Adam Pendelton (@pendleton.adam)

While everyone else is painting some type of living form, Adam Pendelton’s art uses language. But don’t be fooled. Though his work mostly uses letters, the pieces are powerful and immersive. With words, his creations literally scream at you.

6. Jeremy Martin (@jeremymartinofficial)

Hailing from Detroit, Michigan, Jeremy Martin dubs himself as an iPad artist. On the digital device, he renders amazing, eye-popping paintings of notable and everyday people. He recently did an artist talk for Apple, and Prince once praised his work by sharing a portrait of himself, that Martin created.

7. Deborah Roberts (@rdeborah191)

Deborah Roberts is another collage artist, but differing from Mark, her work is rough, heavy and aggressively pops directly in your face. A lot of her work on Instagram features black girls, and the way she puts the pieces together gives them the lively attitude we know and love to see from our beautiful princesses.

8. Nina Chanel Abney (@ninachanel)

Nina Chanel Abney’s art bursts with color and delight. But underneath the brightness lies daring, meaningful messages. For example, she once painted her classmates, from her time in grad school at Parsons, in orange prison jumpsuits, and turned white members into black people. Thought-provoking art, done right.

9. Paul Octavious (@pauloctavious)

Paul Octavious is an artist from Chicago that uses photography, along with a bit of video, to make fanciful creations. A few years ago, he did a cool series where he matched pantone swatches to everyday objects.

10. Leroy Campbell (@leroycampbellart)

A Charleston, South Carolina native, Leroy Campbell paints amazingly moving images, and embellishes them with text that often looks like it was clipped right out of a newspaper. He’s not only producing these creations on canvases. On his Insta page, he showed off a violin case that he blessed with his work.

11. Frank Morrison (@frankmorrison)

Starting as a graffiti artist in New Jersey, Frank Morrison is now a painter who illustrates children’s books, and his own powerful works of “everyday, underrepresented people and places within the urban landscape.” His paintings are instant classics that showcases the beauty of black, with subtle playfulness and obvious strength.

12. Cyd Vicious (@moscacyd)

This Brooklyn artist, Cyd Vicious, makes wearable art. It’s like New York graffiti on caps, sweatshirts and jackets. He also paints on canvas, often depicting the female body as beautiful flowers.

13. Sondra R. Perry (@sondraperry02)

Sondra R. Perry’s cutting edge digital artwork is quirky and often feels, literally, out of this world. Humor and heart are the words I would use to describe her genius. Her Insta is subtle, but the link provided on the page leads you to the magic. I suspect that she’ll bring her art to the platform in some creative way, very soon. Until then, check out the video above.

Do you know any other amazing black artists on Instagram? Drop their handle in comments so we can continue to explore!

Giphy

Performance Art

Get relevant content delivered to you once a week