Canaan J. Brown
Degree: MA Contemporary Art Practice
University: Royal College of Art
Graduation Year: 2024
New Blood Art Commentary
Canaan J. Brown's practice engages deeply with the cultural and historical legacies of the Black Atlantic, using magical realism and Afro-surrealism to transform personal and collective narratives into layered, otherworldly works. By blurring the lines between reality and myth, his work explores the themes of displacement, resilience, and the evolving nature of cultural identity across diasporic experiences.
Brown's choice of media plays a critical role in this exploration. Working across digital prints, painting, and installation, he combines traditional and contemporary practices, reflecting the fluidity and hybridity central to the Black Atlantic. His digital prints, in particular, allow him to layer and manipulate imagery, creating compositions that feel fragmented yet interconnected - mirroring the shifting, multifaceted histories he examines. Meanwhile, his painted works ground his practice in materiality, with the richness of colour and form evoking memory and mythology.
This interplay between media invites comparisons to artists like Peter Doig, whose poetic and ambiguous spaces similarly explore identity and memory through mythological imagery. Brown's vibrant and immersive works continue this dialogue, offering an imaginative rethinking of history, cultural heritage, and the enduring impact of the Black Atlantic.
Artist Statement
Canaan J. Brown is an artist, filmmaker, and storyteller, who reframes Black histories and futures. He is inspired by Black excellence, Caribbean mythology, and British Naval history. His work’s key themes also include displacement, repatriation, and freedom.
Brown’s artwork often incorporates magical realism, Afro-surrealism, and fantasy, to imaginatively re-examine diverse Black Atlantic experiences, and to challenge the marginalisation of people of colour.
Through his imaginative, interdisciplinary creative projects, Brown challenges perceptions and fosters deeper, inclusive understandings of cultural heritage, innovation, and identity.
Solo Exhibitions
(2023) The Fantastic Memoir of the Life of Lucius Alexander, A Haint, Recent Activity, Birmingham
Group Exhibitions
(2024) Resilience, The Queen's House, London
(2024) We've been here, Arup, London
(2024) RCA2024, Royal College of Art, London
(2024) Tate Modern Lates: Sonic Disruption, Tate Modern, London
(2024) Desire? Desire!, Royal College of Art, London
(2024) Reframe: The Director's Cut, STEAMhouse, Birmingham
(2024) Reframe: The Director's Cut, Aviva Studios, Manchester
(2024) Summer Party, Studio Chapple, London
(2023) Reframe: The Residency Exhibition, Southbank Centre, London
(2023) Sankofa, Royal College of Art, London
(2023) 40th Anniversary of the BLK Art Group, Wolverhampton School of Art, Wolverhampton
(2023) People Making | BA (Hons) Degree Show, Birmingham School of Art, Birmingham
(2023) CAPbaret, Royal College of Art, London
(2023) The Fantastic Memoir of the Life of Lucius Alexander, A Haint, BCU Inspired Festival, Birmingham
(2022) Location^3: Building Connections, Artefact, Birmingham
(2022) (Algo|Afro)-Futures, Vivid Projects, Birmingham
(2022) The Same Track, Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games, Birmingham
(2022) Rendering Black British History, Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery, Birmingham
(2022) Xover@Lane1 Dry Run, Xover@Lane1, Birmingham
(2021) ImaginAsia 2021: The Pandemic, ImaginAsia, Nottingham
(2021) Into The, Birmingham School of Art, Birmingham
(2021) Unmuted, Birmingham School of Art, Birmingham
(2019) Let's Talk About Race, University of Birmingham, Birmingham
Competitions, Prizes & Awards
(2024) Sir John Akomfrah Fellowship
(2024) Sir Frank Bowling Scholarship
(2023) Gertrude Emily Griffin 1st Prize
(2023) Louisa Anne Ryland Travel Bursary
(2022) Inspirational Student of the Year
(2019) Rising Star Award
(2022) Black Heritage Undergraduate of the Year Award Finalist
(2023) International Awards for Art Criticism (Shortlisted)
