Los Angeles-based artist Jade Yasmeen debuted what is said to be the first colored hyperrealistic portrait of abolitionist and Underground Railroad icon Harriet Tubman. According to BOTWC, the 70×60 oil on canvas painting was featured as part of the Aku World exhibit at the Art Basel event in Miami.
Titled “The Pain Below”, Yasmeen explained she decided to paint a portrait of Tubman “as a way to commemorate the past.”
“Our ancestry is so rich and deserves to be preserved,” the hyper-realism artist added. “That’s my goal as an artist. To continue the legacy of those that came before myself and others. This is a moment in time I’ll never forget.”
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Besides the Tubman painting, Yasmeen also debuted a painting of Mae Jemison, the first African-American woman to travel to space. The artist said she has always looked up to Jamison since childhood because “I recognized that she pushed the status quo.”
In an interview with Duchess International Magazine, Yasmeen said she used to watch her parents paint at their home during childhood. She said she decided to professionally venture into art in 2015 after two years in college. She was studying Elementary Education at the time.
“We have the power to make anything a reality. Anyone who hones in on their innate ability to dream for something beyond their reach is capable of achieving it. It’s possible if we just muster the courage to create it,” Yasmeen said.
