Meet Raymond L. Haywood | Fine Art Painter, Artisan Builder and Educator

We had the good fortune of connecting with Raymond L. Haywood and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Raymond L., how do you think about risk?
I am risk adverse I ride a motorcycle, I am a builder and Artist, all of these activities necessitate a highly agile ability to engage solutions that can have risk.

As a professional fine artist, Artisan Builder and now Construction Technology Instructor at Freedom High School in Oakley CA all of these professions involve strategized risk taking and problem solving on the move.

If there is no risk, then I feel there is no potential learning opportunity in undertaking the challenge or the journey.

Risk and chance are what define my aesthetic and ethos.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
I received my Master of Fine Arts in Painting from San Francisco State University and my Bachelor of Fine Arts in Painting from the University of California at San Diego. These two academic honors have propelled my success in collusion with my over four decade career as an Artisan Builder in the San Francisco Bay Area.

Building and Art are problem solving endeavors that I have a passion for, and sharing the finished project or artwork is the icing on the cake. Choosing to become an Artist is not an easy endeavor given the misrepresentation of Artists and the lack of systemic support for creatives in this capitalist culture,

The unique elements of my success are the following, dedication, commitment and passion. I am dedicated to sharing my unique Abstract Expressionist style of painting and sharing the voice of African American culture. I am committed to professional presentation and development of mentor artists. I have a passion for color and texture and a unique style that is both engaging and soothing all at once.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
Breakfast at Lama Beans restaurant in Berkeley, CA at 8:oo am. Then a ferry trip to Angel Island in the middle of the bay for a lunch time picnic. A ferry ride to Sausalito Ca and the Guaymas restaurant in Tiburon for dinner would be the entry first day explorations.

Oakland CA, Mercury 20 gallery and the galleries on 25th street in downtown Oakland, Lake Merrit and Lake Chalet restaurant for lunch or dinner.

The Berkeley Rose Garden, Tilden Park and its historic Merry Go Round and miniature steam train ride. The Claremont hotel for accommodations and food.

Emeryville CA, Prizefighter bar, Honor Bar, Bay Street shopping center

San Francisco, Fishermen’s wharf, The Presidio, Ocean Beach, Golden Gate Park

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
These two artists among many have laid the foundations of my success:

African American Artists Rae Louise Hayward and Jan Hart-Schuyer both deceased. These women established the Art of Living Black Exhibition now in its 25th annual showing, [Now called the Art of the African Diaspora exhibition] hosted by the Richmond Art Center in Richmond, CA.

I would also like to herald the Richmond Art Center as a venue for promoting education, exhibition and professional development for San Francisco Bay Area Artists.

Finally incredible San Francisco Bay Area artists like Stephen Bruce, Bill Dallas, Jimi Evins, Mark Harris, Gene Dominique, Arthur Norcome and Dr. Damon Powell have had a huge influence on my career.

Website: RaymondLHaywood.com

Instagram: @raymondlhaywood

Image Credits
Photography credit Duane Conliffe contact DuaneConliffe@gmail.com