Carl Owens' professional experience in the field of Art began as an illustrator in the U. S. Army. Following this, he taught art in the Detroit Public Schools and later served as staff artist for the school system. Since 1968 he has been a self-employed artist. He is a member of the National Conference of Artists.

 

Included in his many works are paintings of King Affonso I, and King Khama in the "Great Kings of Africa" series for Anheuser Busch, Inc.; twenty-five "Soul of a Nation" drawings for the McDonald's Corporation; two displays-"Roots, Stems and Flowers" and "Ford Salutes the Black Composer" -which were exhibited nationally by the Ford Motor Company; the portrait series, "Ingenious Americans" for the National Distillers, Inc.; two film-strips-"The Life of Fredrick Douglass" and "The Negroes Quest for Education"- for the Pepsi Cola Company; a mural and book entitled "Picture History of the Afro-American" for the Rand McNally Corporation; Illustrated the 1988 National Sickle Cell Poster and the 1987 and 1988 Calendar of Black History for Aetna Life and Casualty. Other clients include Georgia Power, General Motors, Blue Cross-Blue Shield, The Michigan Chamber of Commerce, Motown Records Corp., Time Magazine, The Storer Broadcasting Co., Encyclopedia Britannica and MichCon.

 

Carl Owens began his career in portraiture and continues to work in this field. A sampling of the commissions he has received includes portraits of Former U.S. Solicitor General Wade McCree, Henry Ford II, Congressman John Conyers, Jr., former Detroit Mayor Coleman Young, Mrs. Rosa Parks, Judge Damon Keith, Mr. Berry Gordy, Carmen McRae and Reggie Jackson.

 

In addition to numerous private collections, his fine art has been on exhibition at: The Whitney Museum of American Art, New York: The Minneapolis Institute of Arts; The Art Institute of Chicago; the M.H. DeYoung Museum, San Francisco; The Detroit Institute of Arts; The Cincinnati Art Museum; The Smithsonian Institute, Washigton, D.C., the North American Black Historical Museum, Ontario, Canada; The Museum of African American History, Detroit, Michigan; and the Detroit Historical Museum. Mr. Owens has exhibited in numerous galleries both nationally and internationally and his art is in the collections of the government of Zimbabwe, Egypt, Grenada and Zambia.

 

He and his art have been featured in a wide range of local and national publications including: The National Leader, Ebony, Essence, Jet, First World, Encore, New York Society of Illustrators Annual, Art Director, Bilalian News, Newsweek and USA Today.

 

A partial list of honors awarded Carl Owens include: the New York Society of Illustrators Citation for Merit; Outstanding Artist Award, Michigan Chapter, National Conference of Artists; both a Testimonial Resolution and a Spirit of Detroit Award from the Detroit City Council; the Mayor's Award of Merit; the American Black Artists Pioneer Award; the Optimists International Certificate of Appreciation for Community Service; the American Black Artists Award for Outstanding Achievement in Visual Arts; the National Conference of Artists First Afrikan World Festival Award, Visual Arts; and a Testimonial Resolution from James J. Blanchard, former Governor of the State of Michigan.

 

Art related travel experience includes: The Second World Festival of Black and African Art and Culture, Lagos, Nigeria; The First New World Cultural Festival of The African Diaspora, Bahia and Rio de Janeiro, Brazil; The Second New World Cultural Festival of The African Diaspora, Port-Au-Prince, Haiti. Drawing and painting trips have been taken to Egypt, West Africa, Greece, Turkey, Mexico and the Caribbian.

 

 

 

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