Shannon T. Lewis

Shannon T. Lewis  (b. 1981 in Toronto, Canada; lives and works in Berlin, Germany)  is an artist of Caribbean descent reconfiguring human forms and the spaces they inhabit within her complex and vivid paintings. Lewis begins with assemblage — the forefront of her practice — utilizing fragments of form and space. Particularly inspired by social cues of culture, whimsical aspects in the work evoke a notion of freedom by examining marginalized identities. 

The use of architectural elements is a recurring element, oftentimes inspired by ornate iconography. Painted and interlaced limbs reconnoiter the history of femininity and its relation to Blackness. Lewis offers a window into freedom and body politics as the figurative compositions explore surrealism. Haunting portraits derived from archival and personal sources, Lewis imbues the past and present to construct a utopian future. 

Lewis has exhibited in Canada, the United States, Trinidad, Switzerland, England and Germany. She has a Bachelor of Arts from OCADU in Toronto (Canada) and a Master of Fine Arts from Goldsmiths, University of London (UK). In 2025, Lewis was invited as a guest professor for the fall semester at the Universität der Künste in Berlin (Germany) to teach the painting course “Dramaturgy of the Object” in the Bühnebild department.