Kestin Cornwall is a Toronto-based artist celebrated for his bold, graphic portraits that merge street art’s energy with comics and pop culture storytelling. Raised in the Windsor, Ontario area, with family roots in Grenada and Detroit, Cornwall’s work reflects a cross-border perspective on race, media, and history, exploring what it means to be Black in North America. He studied at Sheridan College, completing Art Fundamentals and Illustration programs, blending traditional drawing and painting with modern digital reproduction and screen-printing techniques.
Cornwall’s artwork frequently showcases powerful subjects with brown skin. His creative process involves hand-drawing, redrawing in Adobe Illustrator, and employing analog techniques to enhance the works through painting and layering. Pulling from lessons from visionary artists, he adds pottery and foliage last, obscuring fully rendered sections, which gives each piece unique blemishes and beauty. This approach challenges stereotypes while celebrating resilience and identity.
The artist often incorporates motifs from nature and pottery, emphasizing the shared history of Black Americans and Caribbean communities. Shared cultural knowledge of plants, natural medicine, and gardening enriches his work, reflecting deeply rooted Black cultural traditions.
Inspired by graphic realism, street art, and vintage comics, Cornwall’s pieces invite viewers to question how popular culture constructs racial imagery. He is actively engaged in community and education as an assistant professor at OCAD University, a co-founder of the Solid Black Collective, and a contributor to projects like NBA Creators. His work has been recognized with accolades such as CAPIC’s Best in Show and London’s Young Guns Emerging Art Award. Cornwall continues to push artistic boundaries while intertwining personal narratives with broader cultural commentary.
Instagram: @kestincornwall