Carolyn Jean Martin is a writer, educator, and artist. Her writing practice interrogates the impact of philosophy and aesthetic traditions on the construction of race and identity, with an emphasis on articulations of Blackness in the Western visual field. Carolyn has presented her research at the University of Pretoria, South Africa, UC Berkeley, Georgia Southern University and the College Art Association, among other venues. In 2023 she was elected as the Emerging Professional Director on the College Art Association Board of Directors.

As a visual artist Carolyn's multi-media practice explores how identity is constructed and understood within the social lenses of nationality, ethnicity and race, and how these are sustained and/or transformed through the movements of diaspora. Her artwork has appeared in solo and group exhibitions in China, Canada, and various locations in the United States.

Carolyn received an MA in the History and Theory of Contemporary Art and an MFA in painting from the San Francisco Art Institute. In 2023 she completed her PhD in Philosophy, Aesthetics, and Art Theory from the Institute for Doctoral Studies in the Visual Arts where she was a David Driskell Fellow.


Photo by Sarah Deragon @ portraitstothepeople.com