Charles Dickson
Charles Dickson (b. 1947, Los Angeles, CA), an innovator, sculptor, and designer, has been a uniting figure in the Los Angeles art scene for several decades. Born and raised in South Central Los Angeles, his intricate sculptures in wood, concrete, metal, bronze, glass, acrylic, and more catalog and honor the cultural significance, beauty and gifts of those with African descent. Throughout his career Dickson has sought a language, communicated through tools, symbols, and forms from the artistic heritage of Africa to reflect and uplift the unique identities and circumstances of African Americans in the United States. Dickson’s public artwork spans decades and can be found throughout Southern California. These include Wishing on a Star, California African American Museum, Los Angeles, CA; Mariposa Green-Line Station's custom benches, wall reliefs and pyramid; and Car Culture, a Destination Crenshaw project in Leimert Park, CA.
Dickson has exhibited extensively throughout the United States. Featured solo exhibitions include The Manifestation of Form, Emeritus Gallery, Santa Monica, CA (2023); Metaphors, California African American Museum, Los Angeles, CA (2015-2016; and Through The Eyes of Charles Dickson, Watts Towers Art Center, Noah Purifoy Gallery, Charles Mingus Youth Arts Center, Los Angeles, CA (2014), among others. Select group shows include Back At Cha – A Celebration of Alonzo Davis, parrasch heijnen, Los Angeles, CA (2025); Aspects of Nude: Selections from the Permanent Collection, California African American Museum, Los Angeles, CA (2019); Pacific Standard Time: Art in L.A. 1945 – 1980, California African American Museum, Los Angeles CA, Watts Towers Art Center, Los Angeles, CA (2011-2012); and L.A. Object and David Hammons Body Prints, Roberts Tilton Gallery, Los Angeles, CA (2007), West Coast 1974: The Black Image, Croker Art Gallery, Sacramento, CA; Los Angeles Municipal Art Gallery, Los Angeles, CA (1974-1975); and Los Angeles 1972: A Panorama of Black Artists, Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Los Angeles, CA (1972), among others.
Select Works
Select Exhibitions
Los Angeles 1972: A Panorama of Black Artists, Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Los Angeles, CA
February 8 - March 19, 1972
West Coast 1974: The Black Image, Croker Art Gallery, Sacramento, CA; Los Angeles Municipal Art Gallery, Los Angeles, CA
September 13 - October 13, 1974
Local Black Artists, Curated by Noah Purifoy, Compton College, Compton, CA
February 7 - 19, 1971
L.A. Object and David Hammons Body Prints, Tilton Gallery, New York, NY. October 20 - November 25, 2006
Back At Cha - A Celebration of Alonzo Davis
parrasch heijnen, Los Angeles, CA
March 22 - April 19, 2025
Pacific Standard Time: Art in L.A. 1945 - 1980
Getty Foundation, J. Paul Getty Museum
2008 - 2012
California African American Museum, Los Angeles, CA
Watts Towers Arts Center, Los Angeles, CA
Life Model: Charles White and His Students, Charles White Elementary School, Los Angeles, CA
Organized by Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Los Angeles, CA
February 16 - September 14, 2019
Charles Dickson: Legacy, A Lifetime Survey, Lancaster Museum of Art and History, Lancaster, CA
February 18, 2015
Select Press
2025
Smith, Tony. “Charles Dickson: An Artist Icon.” Indie Incognito, Vol. 11. February 2025.
2022
“Artbound.” PBS, Season 13, Episode 4, October 2022.
2020
Miller, M.H. “The Artists.” New York Times Magazine, April 2020.
2018
Von Blum, Paul. “Creative Souls: African American Artists in Greater Los Angeles.” The New World African Press: Northridge, CA, 2018.
2014
Pitts, Greg Angaza. “Charles Dickson.” Artillery, January 2014.
2011
“L.A. Object & David Hammons Body Prints.” Tilton gallery: New York, 2011.
2010
Kienholz, Lyn. “L.A. Rising: SoCal Artists Before 1980.” California / International Arts Foundation: Los Angeles, 2010.
2009
“African American Artists in Los Angeles, A Survey Exhibition.” City of Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs, Catalog: Los Angeles, 2009.
1969
Wilson, William. “Watts Festival Strives for an Afro-American Art Style.” Los Angeles Times, August 1969.