Natia Lemay works instinctively, exploring themes of identity, race, and personal history in her figurative paintings. Her works are characterized by their fluidity, jet-black backgrounds, and the expressive body language of her subjects, which reflect her own emotional experiences. It makes sense, in this way, that Lemay has turned to artmaking as a form of meditation. Though she didn’t pick up a paintbrush until age 32, the mixed-race, Afro-indigenous artist—who earned her MFA from Yale School of Art in 2023—was long driven by a pull to heal. Using dollar-store paints and cheap canvases, she found serenity in the act of bringing her subjects to life.

As Lemay began to sift through her adolescent and early adult wounds, her work became more intuitive, allowing her to explore a wider range of emotions through her Black female subjects. Today Lemay works quickly and vulnerably, painting wet-on-wet to capture the frenetic nature of her generational trauma, leveraging a method that requires her to complete pieces fast, usually within a day or two, ensuring her brushstrokes are set and left alone once the paint dries. This approach—a form of meditation—complements the improvisational nature of her practice, which is less about careful planning and more focused on capturing her subjects’ inner worlds. To this end, the figures she depicts represent a blend of personal and collective identity, examining how societal structures and individual histories shape one’s sense of self. Influenced by conceptual artists such as Adrian Piper and Glenn Ligon, Lemay creates immersive environments: soft, domestic scenes featuring Black female subjects at rest, gently beckoning, inviting the viewer to become part of work. Her paintings challenge audiences to reconsider notions of race and identity, prompting introspection and dialogue on the complexities of the human experience.