Woodrow Nash, American

Woodrow Nash (born late 1940s in Akron, Ohio) is an American ceramic sculptor celebrated for creating "African Nouveau." His work blends the slender proportions of 15th-century Benin art with the undulating lines of 18th-century Art Nouveau to depict Black subjects with regality and historical dignity.

After studying at the Pels School of Art in New York City, Nash worked as a fashion illustrator and album designer before dedicating himself full-time to clay sculpture in the late 1980s. His distinctive technique incorporates stoneware, terracotta, and porcelain, utilizing specialized electronic firing methods and raku effects to give his pieces unique, textured finishes.

His work typically features majestic, empty-eyed busts and figures adorned with intricate jewelry, headwraps, and decorative patterns to celebrate ancestral lineage. Nash continues to craft these soul-born creations from his studio in Ohio, exhibiting his pieces in major galleries and private collections nationwide.