Graves International Art

Ernie Barnes (1938-2009) was an American painter, actor, and football player best known for his depictions of figures in motion. His compositions, often filled with crowds of people, were intended to promote racial harmony by showing people from different backgrounds standing side-by-side. “I am bound by the strongest ties with the organic life of all people,” the artist has said. “And being an artist has created in me the desire to continually affirm beauty.” Barnes is commonly associated with the painting The Sugar Shack, inspired by the popular sitcom Good Times, which depicts a crowd of people dancing in a jazz club, their bodies twisting and serpentine. Born on July 15, 1938 in Durham, NC, Barnes began to experiment with painting while studying at North Carolina College. After playing in the National Football League for five years, the artist was hired by Sonny Werblin to be the official artist of the New York Jets. Barnes’s work has appeared on the covers of several albums, including BB King's Making Love is Good For You and Marvin Gaye’s I Want You. In 2004, the artist gained media attention after he was commissioned to paint the mural A Life Restored for Kanye West, which reflected on the rapper’s near-fatal car accident. Barnes died on April 27, 2009 in Los Angeles, CA. His work is currently held in the collections of the American Sport Art Museum and Archives in Daphne, the Seattle Art Museum, and African American Museum in Philadelphia.