These Artistic Puzzles Are Celebrating Black Culture and Beauty

Since elementary school, William Jones and Ericka Chambers have had a lifelong passion for puzzles. The brother-sister duo's enchantment for the brain game didn't fade as adults. Instead, it sparked the idea of their business, Puzzles of Color, aimed to bridge the gap between entertainment and diversity.

The entrepreneurs have cited hundreds of long hours spent where their family would collectively and competitively solve simple and complex puzzles. However, as Jones and Chambers got older, they identified two issues: They recognized that the intricate puzzle pieces featuring cartoons, fantasy, and comics didn't represent them, their family, or friends. In addition to the lack of diversity, they found it frustrating to find a frame to fit their completed puzzle, forcing them to disassemble or create a makeshift display. These observations sparked the concept to launch their business in 2020.

Puzzles of Color brings "pieces of the culture" together by combining the beauty of art and puzzles for a unique experience you can enjoy solo or with loved ones. Not only are the puzzles fun to enjoy, but they also build into framable pieces of art created by artists of color to inspire and provide a conceptual look at the nuances of Black life.

Each puzzle is vividly crafted with rich colors and tones that beautifully depict Black culture and beauty. Some puzzles even morph into stunning images of natural hair. They can be enjoyed by people of all ages and backgrounds regardless of their puzzle expertise. If you're looking for a meaningful and creative gift this holiday season, Puzzles of Color has many options. Ahead, we chatted with some of the artists behind the puzzle images to get the details of their work.

Melrick Steele

Puzzles of Color "Priceless" by Melrick $26.99

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Melrick Steele is known for his vibrant, colorful abstract pieces. He is a self-taught artist who started drawing at four-years-old. Various cultures and everyday life inspires many of his paintings. In addition to painting, Steele's work as a tattoo artist has been featured in Urban Ink Magazine.

What inspires the types of natural hair you paint? 

When I'm painting, I am in the comfort of my home. I usually tune in to music that drives my imagination, usually R&B or hip-hop. The artists can vary widely, from the 90s to today's music, and I find them visually inspirational. My painting's themes also usually depict the lives of people of my heritage or urban views. These pieces show imagery of love, hope, emotion, and happiness. The character's hair is usually also inspired by the topic of my painting. 

Are there any challenges in painting natural hair? 

There aren't challenges of painting natural hair in my eyes. It's all about letting the shapes and colors of nature lead. My piece selected for Puzzles of Color was an already completed abstract image of an actual picture I reconstructed of my son and me. It highly represents love between father and son. 

Representation has always been a challenge in many creative industries. How does it feel seeing your artistic work reflected in a puzzle for all ages to enjoy? 

Seeing my work through this medium is the epitome of representation in my eyes. It has given children the opportunity to bond with their families and provide them with the time to go through the creative motions of finishing a puzzle. 

Kwanzaa Edwards

Puzzles of Color "To Be Loved" by Kwanzaa $31.99

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Kwanzaa Edwards is a painter and illustrator currently living and working in San Antonio, Texas. Kwanzaa became obsessed with illustration at 14-years-old, which developed into a love for painting. Her work explores the intersectionality of Black womanhood with her personal interests throughout.

What inspires the types of natural hair you paint?

Shape plays a huge role in the way I paint natural hair. One of my favorite things about natural hair is its organic shape. It never has to be drawn in the same form, and every Afro I draw can slightly differ from the previous one.

What are the challenges of painting natural hair? 

Technique—specifically shaping the art to appear to be hair to the viewer. Since I paint hair in a 2D flat style, I don’t use elements like texture. I’m constantly worried about accidentally making the natural hair look like a blob of colors and not actual curls and coils. 

Representation has always been a challenge in many creative industries. How does it feel seeing your artistic work reflected in a puzzle for all ages to enjoy? 

It feels awesome. This is definitely a market I hadn’t considered. Still, it's also a fun and engaging way to make art accessible to everyone. Seeing that this encourages family time is my ultimate goal at heart.

Ija Charles

Puzzles of Color "Sisters" by Ija $31.99

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What is your creative process like when you are painting? 

I usually listen to underground hip-hop or instrumentals while creating artwork. I’m generally isolated and take out a few hours throughout the day to create.

What inspires the types of natural hair you paint? 

I love to work on larger paintings of natural hair to create scenes to show them off better.

What are the challenges of painting natural hair?

There are no real challenges when it comes to painting natural hair. For me, it’s very abstract and flows on its own. You can do anything with hair as your canvas, and I love working with different hair types.

Kaitlin June

Puzzles of Color "Strength" by Kaitlin $26.99

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Kaitlin June is a full-time freelance illustrator and tattoo artist who graduated from the Art Academy of Cincinnati with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Illustration. With limited digital art programs at her college, she taught herself how to work within digital painting programs.

What is your creative process like when you are painting? 

I like to create a comfortable space for working by burning incense or other herbs. I enjoy mentally blanking out while drawing, so I put on a show that I don’t have to pay attention to. It’s easier for me to space out with talking rather than music. The chatter often fuels my inner dialogue that challenges ideas or creates an emotional response adding to the creative process. I struggle with managing my ADHD and focusing on one particular thing, so it’s best to have a handful of things going on around me that are easy to ignore. 

What inspires the types of natural hair you paint?

 I enjoy using various shapes and exploring different techniques to articulate curl patterns. I love taking the time to draw different types of squiggly lines to add movement. I like drawing natural hair in a way that shows freedom. I love to add an abstract element to the coloring process by adding a bold hue or using unique strokes to give the illusion of curls. 

What are the challenges of painting natural hair?

There are absolutely no challenges in drawing or painting natural hair. It is all about staying out of your head and not overthinking it. When I first started drawing curly hair, I would overthink and draw every curl, and the shape would often suffer. Still, now it’s about staying loose and creating more movement that alludes to coils rather than drawing them individually. I try to take a playful approach and use bright colors and brush texture to give the illusion of volume. I try to use gravity-defying movement to move the viewer's eye in the composition. 

Representation has always been a challenge in many creative industries. How does it feel seeing your artistic work reflected in a puzzle for all ages to enjoy? 

I love being able to see my work on a puzzle. I love the idea that people are putting a piece of my art together for fun. I’ve had a handful of people reach out about this work and say they felt represented in these puzzles, which feels great.