Sheila Crider

Sheila Crider is a self-taught artist currently based in Baltimore, Maryland after living and working in Washington, D. C. for most of her life. Her work began with creative writing and making handmade envelopes and books at art fairs and craft markets. Encouraged by the public response to this work, she began to exhibit collages and wall hangings made from the same hand-dyed papers. When asked to describe her work, Crider refers to it as Blackstraction, a term she coined. Used as a noun, it signifies “the objectification of painting; an emotive non-representational work of art stressing formal internal relationships using African/American/Asian art practices at times employing craft techniques and three-dimensional presentation.” As a transitive verb it signifies “to make markings with color on diverse surfaces that relate to each other and their environment in two and three dimensions.” Her work is included in many public and private collections, including the James E. Lewis Museum of Art (Baltimore, MD), Yale University Book Collection (New Haven, CT), State Department Print Collection (Washington, DC), African American Museum (Dallas, TX), Ranger Italy (Serengo, Italy), Mino Washi Paper Museum (Mino, Japan), Hyatt Regency Hotel (Crystal City, VA) and the Library of Congress Print Collection (Washington, DC).