Marnika Shelton is an African-American Artist specializing in figurative sculpture. Her work focuses on political and cultural paradigms facing 21st century Black America. Combing the media, history, and cultural consciousness, she weaves intensely poetic and poignant narratives.
Focusing on the paradigm of the African-American experience, her work is about the contradictions that now exist as a result of centuries of oppression. Relying on history and stereotypes, this work questions many of the social and cultural constructs that have defined her life.
Shelton uses satire to expose how these stereotypes have affected the esteem of a mass number of people over several generations. Shelton acknowledges that many truths were lost, and many stories will never be told, and she, through her work aims to tell those untold stories.