Shara Mays

Shara Mays creates a dialogue between identity and the environments that influence it. Through her use of paint, color theory, and the visual language of landscapes, she investigates ideas of access, restriction, and belonging. Inspired by African diasporic heritage, Mays reflects on both personal and collective histories connected to land and its communities, encouraging thoughtful reflection on land ownership and the rights tied to cultural memory. Her artistic approach is rooted in intuitive, gestural abstraction, where vibrant, swirling marks create dynamic fields that orbit around contemplative compositions. These works evoke the vitality of life—whether in the lush, intertwined greenery suggested by saturated hues or the restless, shifting waters conveyed through energetic brushwork. However, Mays does not depict these landscapes literally; instead, she likens her paintings to poems. Through her vivid use of color and emotive marks, she hints at fragments of stories, inviting viewers into a partial narrative that remains open and elusive. ...