Julian Jamaal Jones is a multidisciplinary artist and educator born and raised in Indianapolis, IN. Julian earned his Bachelor’s degree in Photography in 2020 from the Herron School of Art + Design and a Masters in Photography in 2022 from Cranbrook Academy of Art, under the tutelage of Chris Fraser. Julian is the recipient of the 2025 Restoring Hope, Restoring Trust Artist-in-Residence at Wabash College, the recipient of the 2024 Black Mountain College + Fine Arts Center Residency, 2024 PATTERN’s S.P.A.C.E Residency, 2023 CICF Artist Ambassadors Travel Grant, awarded ArtsConnet’s “Artist to Watch” in 2022, and the recipient of the 2022 Playground Detroit Emerging Artist Fellowship, supported by the Knight Foundation. Jones’s works are in the permanent textile collection of Cranbrook Art Museum, Richmond Art Museum, and the Book Tower Detroit.
Jones memorializes Black culture by presenting fresh perspectives while presenting creative freedom within traditional landscapes. His unique practice communicates through the historical language of African American quilting tradition by implementing abstract forms and vibrant colors in his works to bypass the preconceptions and open conversations around his Black experience.