Cleveland is home to a thriving art scene—and to the artists who turn this city into their canvas. creativity here is bold, resilient, and deeply rooted in community. The art of Cleveland tells stories of history, identity, and imagination, shaped by the people who live and create here.
This feature shines a light on some of the artists helping define that spirit. Each brings a unique voice and vision, contributing to a city that continues to evolve through art. By celebrating their work, we celebrate Cleveland itself—a place where creativity doesn’t just exist, it thrives.
Anna Chapman
In a world that often prizes individualism, Anna Chapman is quietly weaving a counter-narrative—one rooted in connection, ecology, and collective healing. The 36-year-old artist and educator, who recently returned to Chagrin Falls, creates from materials gathered from the land itself: foraged sticks, black walnut husks, and locally processed fibers transformed into ink, charcoal, and yarn. Her art—and her teaching—invite others to slow down, reconnect, and remember the creative power of community.
David Ramsey
Growing up in Cleveland’s Buckeye neighborhood, curator and gallery owner David Ramsey didn’t see much art. The Cleveland Museum of Art felt “like another state away,” he says and creative careers were something he couldn’t picture. Years later, that absence became his inspiration.
Through his gallery, Deep Roots Experience, Ramsey is building what he once needed, a space where Black and Brown artists can see themselves represented, where communities feel ownership over art, and where culture is not just displayed but lived. What began as a grassroots experiment on the corner of East 79th and Central in Cleveland’s Fairfax neighborhood has evolved into a professional, citywide vision — one that’s now reshaping how institutions like the Cleveland Botanical Garden and University Hospitals connect with community.
Dr. Jordi Rowe
In Dr. Jordi Rowe’s world, science and creativity are not separate paths—they intertwine. Step into her office, and you immediately sense it: there are no college or medical degrees on the walls. “They’re in a pile on the floor,” she laughs, her voice as cheery as her bright yellow shirt.
Instead, her walls overflow with art—her own and that of her friends. There’s a poster from her solo show It Tastes Like Cotton Candy at Waterloo Arts, an abstract painting of a face with sliding eyes by her former instructor Mike Meier, a whimsical poodle portrait by her friend Frank Hadzima, and a framed photo of bottles filled with urine, “which I think is the funniest thing,” she says. It’s a reflection of her life: rigorous medicine and boundless art, coexistence rather than compromise.
Chi-Irena Wong
Canvas Photo / Alyssa Schmitt
Self-proclaimed doodler Chi-Irena Wong credits the beginning of her art journey to the margins of her high school homework papers. Anime characters crowded the edges of worksheets, and she taught herself to experiment with whatever affordable materials she had, like watercolor and colored pencils.
What began as a collection of small, off-to-the-side sketches has since scaled far beyond notebook paper. Today, Wong’s work can be seen across Northeast Ohio—in exhibitions, on library cards, in coloring books and tote bags, and even stretched across the sides of Cleveland buildings, transforming blank facades into vibrant, absurd fantasy worlds of her own making.
Yet when she first started out, inspired by Japanese artist and filmmaker Hayao Miyazaki and “Tekkonkinkreet,” a cult Japanese animated film, art wasn’t a perceived skill—just the one thing she felt drawn to. “All I really had was not even a talent,” Wong, 27, says. “It was like a passion, and I just followed my passion.”
