Tell Me About Yourself: Remembering Shirley Aley Campbell

Cleveland figurative artist Shirley Aley Campbell loved to paint people- and she loved sharing their stories even more.  “People fascinate me,” Campbell explained, whenever I begin a piece, I can hear “that bare canvas calling to me. Screaming at me… put something ON, for heaven’s sake. Tell me about yourself!”

Shirley, who passed away in August of 2018, was part of the core of artists who began to shape Cleveland’s creative landscape in the late 1960’s.  Known for the compassion with which she depicted marginalized subjects, Campbell’s work features bikers, drag queens, burlesque dancers, prostitutes and members of the LGBTQ community, all rendered in saturated hues and attentive detail.

Campbell had a profound impact on Northeast Ohio’s arts community.  She exhibited extensively, was a beloved Professor of Art at Cuyahoga Community College for 25 years and taught at the Cleveland Institute of Art for 14 years.  Campbell also co-owned a gallery which exhibited and supported important regional creators.  In 1996, she was one of 9 original artists who founded the Artists Archives of the Western Reserve, an institution created to preserve the unique visual culture of Northeast Ohio.

In tribute to Campbell’s vast legacy, a pop-up exhibition will be held at the Artists Archives from March 8 to March 16, 2019 and a Celebration of Life reception will be held on Sunday, March 10th, 1-3pm. All work will be available for purchase; the proceeds from sales will benefit her estate and provide for the additional archiving of Campbell’s work.

Also on view will be Archived Artist Judy Takács’ moving portrait, When I Grow Up, I Want to Be Shirley Campbell, which will enter the AAWR’s permanent collection after the show.

Event is FREE and open to the public.  Free parking available in our adjacent lot and on East 123rd Street.

Feature Image: Shirley Aley Campbell, The Studio (Diptych- Self Portrait), 1992, Oil on canvas, 5′ x 6′