Sula Gordon is a multimedia artist originally from Providence, Rhode Island, now based in Brooklyn, New York. She is a graduate of Hampshire College, a small interdisciplinary liberal arts institution in Amherst, Massachusetts, founded on rethinking the norms of higher education. Gordon has embraced Hampshire’s philosophy of cross-disciplinary thinking, rigorous research, and questioning the status quo as a foundational tenet of her artmaking.
Her work resists the fetishization of Black pain and challenges the notion of Blackness as a monolith, while also exploring themes of queerness. Through painting, printmaking, and whatever materials inspire her, Gordon creates a love letter to herself, her family, and her community—affirming that their beauty is seen and celebrated.
Currently, Sula serves as an Admissions Counselor at the renowned Parsons School of Design, where she helps shape the next generation of artists and designers. This role keeps her closely connected to emerging trends and voices in contemporary art.
Among her notable achievements is her participation in the Carrizozo AIR Residency Program in November 2023, where she began her exploration of printmaking. She also contributed to the creation of the film Spread Wild: Pleasures of the Yucca, in collaboration with acclaimed artist Paula Wilson. The film has toured multiple galleries and premiered at Smack Mellon.
Her work has been exhibited at the Bridge Art Gallery (February 2022) and extends into publishing, with cover designs for influential books such as Left Loneliness, Freedom, Justice, and Decolonization, But What Do You Think?, and Lessons from Audre Lorde’s The Uses of Anger: UCONN Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies at 50.
Through her practice, Sula Gordon continues to create works that are both visually compelling and deeply engaged with cultural and social commentary—reminding us that no one exists as a monolith.
Photo credit: Simeon Mark Codie III