About the Artist
Shareon (Bhare) Blenman
North Carolina
B. 1998
Artist Statement
Shareon “Bhare” Blenman is a multidisciplinary artist based in Charlotte, North Carolina. Born in 1998 to Barbadian immigrant parents, Bhare initially pursued a career as a chef before transitioning into the art world. His diverse practice encompasses traditional canvas work, digital oil paintings, sculptures, and even ventures into skateboarding design.
Bhare earned his undergraduate degree from Johnson & Wales University, balancing various creative jobs during the early stages of the global lockdown. By the age of 23, his work had already been showcased in traditional and digital galleries across North America and Europe. He has exhibited in more than three professional galleries and sold over 30 pieces in his debut year.
Now at 26, Bhare has been featured extensively in a magazine, completed a 40-foot commission for the Spectrum Center, and even had his work sold through Sotheby’s.
Bhare currently lives and works in Charlotte, North Carolina. He merges his work through both traditional and digital styles, exhibiting with prestigious galleries in New York, Pennsylvania, Los Angeles, Copenhagen and most recently Toronto.
I constantly draw inspiration from my personal journals, embedding my artworks with reflections of my own growth and the intimate intricacies of home life. Through a series of fantastical paintings, I offer a kind of diagnosis—depictions of ordinary life layered with color and line, guiding the viewer through the highs and lows of daily existence. Much of my work is steeped in symbolism, representing an ever-evolving spectrum of emotions through bold geometric shapes, figures, and expressive free writing. My paintings serve as visual manifestations of these inner dialogues—complex, layered, and often full of contradictions, much like the human experience itself.
After the 2019 pandemic, I found myself delving deeply into the drama of hyper-introversion, questioning my place in the world and exploring ideas of identity and belonging as a Black first-generation American. I’m constantly cross-examining the complexities of identity, belonging, and what it means to exist between cultures. These questions are deeply embedded in my work, as I use painting to probe, to search, and sometimes to try to make sense of where I fit in. My art seeks to provide a cathartic experience, a way of cleansing lingering emotions and heavy feelings. It’s not an absolute truth, but in certain moments, it seems to help.