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Biography

Cynthia Hawkins (b. 1950, Queens, NY) received a BA in painting from the Queens College, City University of New York in 1977 and an MFA from Maryland Institute College of Art in 1992. She has exhibited widely in New York and the Unites States throughout her career, and her one-person exhibitions include Cynthia Hawkins, Just Above Midtown, New York (1981); Cynthia Hawkins, Frances Wolfson Art Center, Miami (1986); New Works: The Currency of Meaning, Cinque Gallery, New York (1989); Selected Works: 1990–1996, Queens College Art Center (1997); Clusters: Stellar and Earthly, Buffalo Science Museum, Buffalo (2009); Natural Things, 1996–99, STARS, Los Angeles (2022); and Gwynfor’s Soup, or the Proximity of Matter, Ortuzar Projects, New York (2023). Hawkins’s work is in numerous public collections, including The Studio Museum in Harlem, New York; The Bronx Museum of the Arts, New York; Kenkeleba Gallery, New York; The La Grange Art Museum, Georgia; and the Department of State, Washington, D.C. She has received numerous awards, including the Helen Frankenthaler Award for Painting (2023); the Black Metropolis Research Consortium Fellowship (2009); The Herbert and Irene Wheeler Grant (1995); and the Brooklyn Museum Art School Scholarship (1972). 

Selected Works

Selected Works Thumbnails
Cynthia Hawkins Investigation into Green (Green with Gold), 1986 oil on canvas 72 x 24 in. (182.9 x 59.7 cm)

Cynthia Hawkins
Investigation into Green (Green with Gold), 1986
oil on canvas
72 x 24 in. (182.9 x 59.7 cm)

Cynthia Hawkins Investigation into Green (Purple), 1986 oil on canvas 72 x 24 in. (182.9 x 59.7 cm)

Cynthia Hawkins
Investigation into Green (Purple), 1986
oil on canvas
72 x 24 in. (182.9 x 59.7 cm)

Cynthia Hawkins
Investigation into Green (Yellow Flashes), 1986
oil on canvas
70 x 26 in. (177.8 x 66 cm)

Cynthia Hawkins
Investigation into Green (Yellow Flashes), 1986
oil on canvas
70 x 26 in. (177.8 x 66 cm)

Cynthia Hawkins Menagerie of Players, 1975/76 Oil on canvas 45¾ x 81¼ in. 116.2 x 206.38 cm Courtesy STARS Gallery, Photo: Paul Salveson

Cynthia Hawkins
Menagerie of Players, 1975/76
Oil on canvas
45¾ x 81¼ in.
116.2 x 206.38 cm
Courtesy STARS Gallery, Photo: Paul Salveson
 

Cynthia Hawkins Living Spare, 1975 Painting on paper 50 x 50 in. 127 x 127 cm Courtesy STARS Gallery, Photo: Paul Salveson

Cynthia Hawkins
Untitled, 1975
Pastel on paper
19½ x 25½ in.
49.53 x 64.77 cm
Courtesy STARS Gallery, Photo: Paul Salveson

Cynthia Hawkins Creed of Athanasius #2, 1990 Oil on canvas 68 x 100 in 172.8 x 254 cm Courtesy STARS Gallery, Photo: Paul Salveson

Cynthia Hawkins
Creed of Athanasius #2, 1990
Oil on canvas
68 x 100 in
172.8 x 254 cm
Courtesy STARS Gallery, Photo: Paul Salveson

Cynthia Hawkins
Natural Things #2, 1996
Oil on canvas
36 × 48 inches
91.4 x 121.9 cm
Courtesy STARS Gallery, Photo: Paul Salveson
 

Cynthia Hawkins
Natural Things #2, 1996
Oil on canvas
36 × 48 inches
91.4 x 121.9 cm
Courtesy STARS Gallery, Photo: Paul Salveson
 

Cynthia Hawkins Clusters: Pi Scorpii, 2004 Acrylic on canvas 50 × 40 inches 127 x 101.6 cm Courtesy STARS Gallery, Photo: Paul Salveson

Cynthia Hawkins
Clusters: Pi Scorpii, 2004
Acrylic on canvas
50 × 40 inches
127 x 101.6 cm
Courtesy STARS Gallery, Photo: Paul Salveson

Cynthia Hawkins Gwynfor’s Soup, or The Proximity of Matter #8, 2023 Acrylic on canvas 48 x 48 inches  121.9 x 121.9 cm Courtesy STARS Gallery, Photo: Dario Lasagni

Cynthia Hawkins
Gwynfor’s Soup, or The Proximity of Matter #8, 2023
Acrylic on canvas
48 x 48 inches 
121.9 x 121.9 cm
Courtesy STARS Gallery, Photo: Dario Lasagni
 

Cynthia Hawkins Investigation into Green (Green with Gold), 1986 oil on canvas 72 x 24 in. (182.9 x 59.7 cm)

Cynthia Hawkins
Investigation into Green (Green with Gold), 1986
oil on canvas
72 x 24 in. (182.9 x 59.7 cm)

Cynthia Hawkins Investigation into Green (Purple), 1986 oil on canvas 72 x 24 in. (182.9 x 59.7 cm)

Cynthia Hawkins
Investigation into Green (Purple), 1986
oil on canvas
72 x 24 in. (182.9 x 59.7 cm)

Cynthia Hawkins
Investigation into Green (Yellow Flashes), 1986
oil on canvas
70 x 26 in. (177.8 x 66 cm)

Cynthia Hawkins
Investigation into Green (Yellow Flashes), 1986
oil on canvas
70 x 26 in. (177.8 x 66 cm)

Cynthia Hawkins Menagerie of Players, 1975/76 Oil on canvas 45¾ x 81¼ in. 116.2 x 206.38 cm Courtesy STARS Gallery, Photo: Paul Salveson

Cynthia Hawkins
Menagerie of Players, 1975/76
Oil on canvas
45¾ x 81¼ in.
116.2 x 206.38 cm
Courtesy STARS Gallery, Photo: Paul Salveson
 

Cynthia Hawkins Living Spare, 1975 Painting on paper 50 x 50 in. 127 x 127 cm Courtesy STARS Gallery, Photo: Paul Salveson

Cynthia Hawkins
Untitled, 1975
Pastel on paper
19½ x 25½ in.
49.53 x 64.77 cm
Courtesy STARS Gallery, Photo: Paul Salveson

Cynthia Hawkins Creed of Athanasius #2, 1990 Oil on canvas 68 x 100 in 172.8 x 254 cm Courtesy STARS Gallery, Photo: Paul Salveson

Cynthia Hawkins
Creed of Athanasius #2, 1990
Oil on canvas
68 x 100 in
172.8 x 254 cm
Courtesy STARS Gallery, Photo: Paul Salveson

Cynthia Hawkins
Natural Things #2, 1996
Oil on canvas
36 × 48 inches
91.4 x 121.9 cm
Courtesy STARS Gallery, Photo: Paul Salveson
 

Cynthia Hawkins
Natural Things #2, 1996
Oil on canvas
36 × 48 inches
91.4 x 121.9 cm
Courtesy STARS Gallery, Photo: Paul Salveson
 

Cynthia Hawkins Clusters: Pi Scorpii, 2004 Acrylic on canvas 50 × 40 inches 127 x 101.6 cm Courtesy STARS Gallery, Photo: Paul Salveson

Cynthia Hawkins
Clusters: Pi Scorpii, 2004
Acrylic on canvas
50 × 40 inches
127 x 101.6 cm
Courtesy STARS Gallery, Photo: Paul Salveson

Cynthia Hawkins Gwynfor’s Soup, or The Proximity of Matter #8, 2023 Acrylic on canvas 48 x 48 inches  121.9 x 121.9 cm Courtesy STARS Gallery, Photo: Dario Lasagni

Cynthia Hawkins
Gwynfor’s Soup, or The Proximity of Matter #8, 2023
Acrylic on canvas
48 x 48 inches 
121.9 x 121.9 cm
Courtesy STARS Gallery, Photo: Dario Lasagni
 

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