Lili Bernard

Los Angeles, CA

LILI BERNARD is a Cuban-born, Los Angeles-based visual artist and actor. She has exhibited her artwork in numerous galleries and institutions. Her work examines issues of trauma born of sexism and racism, past and present. As an actress and member of SAG/AFTRA, Lili has performed extensively in theatre and TV.

A published writer, Lili blogs for the Huffington Post. She has garnered critical acclaim as an independent curator, longtime arts activist and community organizer. Lili first created and ran HABLA (Harvesting Asian, Black, Latino Artists) in order to provide platforms for underrepresented artists in Los Angeles’ cultural landscape. Realizing that Black artists were the most marginalized of the group, Lili then founded and organized BAILA (Black Artists in Los Angeles), a current movement aimed at building bridges of access for Black artists into the mainstream art world.

Lili received her MFA from Otis College of Art and Design in 2014, under the tutelage of professors Suzanne Lacy, Charles Gaines, Ulysses Jenkins and Andrea Bowers. She is married to civil rights attorney, Franklin L. Ferguson, Jr., and gave birth to six children in a ten year span: Rafael, Isaiah, Elias, Uriel, Joshua and Zion.

"My work exposes the post-colonial paradigm of suffering and resilience, through a collision of cruelty against compassion. The generational struggle of my Afro-Cuban immigrant family and Caribbean ancestors, coupled with my personal experiences as a rape survivor, informs my exploration of the impact of trauma and the unconquerable nature of the human spirit." -- Lili Bernard

  • Work
    • Lili Bernard Art Studio
  • Education
    • MFA Otis College of Art & Design, BA City University of NY, Cornell U