CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. – The Center of Excellence for the Creative Arts (CECA) at Austin Peay State University (APSU) has announced the 2025-26 Tennessee Artist Fellowship recipient, visual artist Omari Booker of Nashville.
Through this fellowship, Booker will receive $5,000 to create new artwork and additional funding to present a free artist lecture at 6:30 p.m. on Feb. 12, at the Frist Art Museum in Nashville.
“Oil paintings are Omari’s predominant medium, but mixed media including charcoal, ink, and found objects are essential building blocks of his work and are used to create finished pieces,” Booker’s biography reads. “Large scale work has been a constant creative outlet for Omari, and murals have also become a consistent part of his creative practice. Storytelling in the form of poetry, prose, and children’s books are also creative outlets.”
“Josh and Le,” one of Omari Booker’s oil on canvas paintings, as featured in the gallery on his personal website. | Contributed photo
The CECA Tennessee Artist Fellowship celebrates contemporary art and supports the continued creative work of exceptional Tennessee artists like Booker. Unlike other fellowships, nominations and applications from artists are not solicited. An APSU faculty committee compiles a list of outstanding artists from across the state and selects the fellowship recipient.
“The committee was incredibly pleased to select Omari as this year’s CECA Tennessee Artist Fellow,” said Dr. Wansoo Kim, an assistant professor in APSU’s Department of Art + Design. “His ongoing creative practice and stories have been a huge inspiration for the greater Nashville community. We hope that this fellowship provides more opportunities and support for his continuous artistic career.”
For those interested in learning more about Booker’s work, his upcoming artist lecture is open to the public on a first-come, first-served basis. Feb. 12 is also college night at the Frist, so APSU students can view all exhibitions for free with their student IDs.
Past CECA Tennessee Artist Fellowship recipients include Stacy Kranitz of Smithville, Maysey Craddock of Memphis, Alicia Henry of Nashville, Andrew Scott Ross of Johnson City, Bryce McCloud of Nashville, Carl E. Moore of Memphis, Benjy Russell of Dowelltown, Karen Seapker of Nashville, Ashton Ludden of Knoxville, Yancy Villa of Memphis, and Jonathan Adams of Knoxville.
For more information on the CECA Tennessee Artist Fellowship, please contact Dr. Andrea Spofford, director of CECA, at spofforda@apsu.edu.
To stay informed about upcoming CECA events, including Booker’s upcoming artist talk, please visit www.apsu.edu/ceca or follow CECA on social media.
About the Artist
Omari Booker, a visual artist based in Los Angeles, California, and Nashville, Tennessee, began his journey as an artist in his senior year of high school at Montgomery Bell Academy. While attending Belmont University, he studied mathematics and other more traditional curricula before he finally focused on studio art and graphic design. He later earned his Bachelor of Science in graphic design from Tennessee State University.
Oil paintings are Booker’s predominant medium, but mixed media, including charcoal, ink, and found objects, are essential building blocks of his work and are used to create finished pieces. Large-scale work has been a constant creative outlet for Booker, and murals have also become a consistent part of his creative practice.
Booker takes a process-oriented approach to his art, embracing it as a therapeutic modality to express his passion for the freedom and independence of the creative process. His art is his personal therapy, and he desires that those viewing it will have personal experiences of catharsis. The philosophy that undergirds his work is “FREEDOM THROUGH ART,” and he aspires to create work that communicates to his audience their unique and intrinsic ability to be free.
To learn more about Booker, visit his website or follow him on Instagram @omaribooker.
