Written by: Julie Thieman, Marketing Intern

Photo by Ingrid Damiani
Glendia Cooper is a contributing artist for LIFT: Contemporary Expressions of the African American Experience which presents a modern response to Jacksonville’s African American Heritage, while using the lyrics to James Weldon Johnson and John Rosamond Johnson’s Lift Ev’ry Voice and Sing as inspiration.

Glendia Cooper, We Are One, mixed media (clay, basket reeds, wooden beads), 22 x 13 x 13 in.
Cooper received her Bachelor of Arts from Mississippi Valley State University and a Master of Art from Jacksonville University. She is a prolific and imaginative potter whose works reflect her own inner spirituality, love of travel, and an appreciation for African techniques.

Glendia Cooper, We Are One, mixed media (clay, basket reeds, wooden beads), 22 x 13 x 13 in. (detail)
Her intricate pieces are created using the coil and slab methods, and are inspired by her life in Mississippi, as well as her travels to Egypt, Benio, the Ivory Coast, Kenya, and Brazil. Cooper’s pieces for LIFT take us on a journey where “we will see connections with the past and hope for the future.”
To learn more about Glendia Cooper visit her website.