Kestin Cornwall

Kestin Cornwall is a Toronto-based artist known for his bold, graphic portraits that blend the energy of street art with the layered storytelling of comics and pop culture. Cornwall's work is grounded in an Afro Modern and contemporary illustration approach, integrating hybrid tools into his creative process, drawing from their visual language and cultural philosophies to inform both his process and subject matter. Growing up in the Windsor, Ontario area, with family roots in Grenada and Detroit, Cornwall brings a cross-border perspective to his work, reflecting on how race, media, and history shape what it means to be Black in North America. He studied at Sheridan College Institute of Technology and Advanced Learning, completing the Art Fundamentals and Illustration programs, where he began combining traditional drawing and painting with contemporary digital reproduction and screen-printing techniques.​

Cornwall’s technique, involving hand-drawing, digitally reworking the images, and subsequently reintroducing analog sensibilities, mirrors a process of reclamation. By removing and then deliberately creating the final artwork by hand, Cornwall asserts the importance of the physical, human-made mark over the digital while questioning issues such as erasure, assimilation, and colonization. He reworks these images through painting and layering to achieve unique compositions, often intentionally adding pottery and foliage last, which covers fully rendered sections of the painting. This technique results in each piece featuring its own unique blemishes and beauty. His work celebrates beauty, resilience, and identity while challenging stereotypes.
​Notably, Cornwall often integrates foliage and motifs from nature and pottery, highlighting the shared history of Black Americans and Caribbean communities. Shared cultural knowledge of plants, farming, and gardening informs his work and serves as a guiding influence, emphasizing the rich traditions and knowledge systems that are deeply rooted in Black culture.

Influenced by graphic realism, street art, and vintage comics, Cornwall's work marries hand-drawn understanding with digital tools, inviting viewers to question how popular culture and entertainment construct images of race. His art doesn't just live in galleries. He is also deeply engaged in community and education. As an associate professor at OCAD University, he co-founded the Solid Black Collective and serves in leadership roles on projects such as It's My Future Toronto and NBA Creators, which empower young designers and amplify the voices of Black, Indigenous, Asian, and Hispanic communities.

With exhibitions in America, Canada, and abroad, and accolades including CAPIC's Best in Show and London's Young Guns Emerging Art Award, Cornwall continues to push boundaries, creating work that is as visually captivating as it is socially urgent, intertwining personal narratives with broader commentary on culture and identity.​

Kestin Cornwall is based in the Greater Toronto Area, where he lives and works.