John-Herbert Wright (b. 1983, Miami, FL) is a Filipino-American multimedia artist and streetwear
designer who lives and works in New York City. Wright has participated in and curated
numerous group exhibitions across New York City, including HEKTAD & FRIENDS, Mark Miller
Gallery (2023), and Wall to Wall, Blue Gallery (2023). His work has been displayed at various art
fairs including Affordable Art Fair (2023), Hamptons Fine Art Fair (2023), and Aqua Art Miami
(2023). Wright held his first solo exhibition, Rewind & Reflect, at the Blue Gallery in 2022.
Moving to New York at age three, Wright took an early interest in the masterpieces held in the
city’s museums. At eight years old, when Wright began painting and commenced his artistic
journey, he started to take inspiration from artists such as Monet and the Impressionists,
Surrealists like Dali, and the colorful strokes of Matisse and the Fauvists. Later, whilst studying at
Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School of Music & Art and Performing Arts, he was introduced to the
neo-expressions of Basquiat and began to observe the works of other contemporary artists.
Gradually, John-Herbert Wright synthesized these influences to develop his own distinctive style.
His artistic approach blends elements of Surrealism, Abstract art, and Neo-Expressionism on
canvas. Drawing from his background as a designer, he integrates techniques from garment
making onto his canvases, resulting in intricate compositions adorned with layered silk-
screened images, drawings, and text.
As the son of a Filipino mother and a bi-racial father, Wright’s exploration of his multi-cultural
background is an essential part of his creative process. Wright grapples with the subject of
identity throughout his dynamic compositions, where dark figures are placed amongst an
urban landscape, leaving the viewer space to navigate the world he creates. Central to his
narrative artwork lies an allegory of the human condition, centering the female nude/mother
and child as the protagonist, he tells the story of the broken seeking respite, the downcast, and
the marginalized "
other.
" Through his imagery, Wright aims to illuminate the universe of darkness within the viewer and himself. Wright seeks to strike a juxtaposition of darkness with fragility, a
recurrent theme in his life and work.