Tay Butler

BIO.  (view CV here)

Tay Butler is a 2019 graduate of the University of Houston's Photography and Digital Media BFA program. With his selection to the University of Arkansas’ Photography MFA program, Tay is consistently building a portfolio of work and exhibitions from Flatland in Houston, TX to Communication Gallery in Madison, WI. Most recently, he was awarded First Prize at the 2019 Citywide African American Artists Exhibition, a collaboration between the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston and the University Museum at Texas Southern.  

Through a rich appreciation for visual arts, Tay left a military and engineering background to find purpose, soon uncovering a deep love for photography. Studying the likes of Gordon Parks and Carrie Mae Weems led him to the work of his biggest influences, Lorna Simpson and Romare Bearden. It was there where his obsession with collage was born. He soon began combining original photography of his native Milwaukee with found images of Black people, completely reframing his memory of home. When not visually exploring his past, present and future, he is working on numerous collaboration projects for an assortment of personnel; the HAITI National Basketball team, non-profit organizations Project Blackboard and Warriors in Art, and several major and independent music artists.