Emerald, 2022
Born and raised in Ghana, Clara Nartey moved to the United States with her husband. After earning her MBA, she worked in finance for several years. As a break from crunching numbers, Nartey explored her creativity with embroidery and stitching, skills she learned from her mother. The economic downturn of 2008 led to a shift in her career, which fortuitously allowed Nartey to delve deep into her artistic investigations with the sewing machine. What began as a creative pastime developed into an original artistic output generated by richly saturated works in thread and fabric. Nartey uses stitching and embroidery thread to create richly colorful and symbolic portraits of African American women.