In 2014, Spencer began doing photography.
In need of a new creative outlet, photography became a form of therapy – the energy exchange between himself and his subjects pulled him out of a dark place and still inspires him to this day to create. His unique style of portrait photography has been defined as fine art with black bodies. His work draws inspiration from jazz, hip-hop culture, and 70’s R&B album covers. In 2015, his work started getting noticed on social media platforms, Tumblr and Instagram. He began working with different artists and local brands on photo projects and also began showcasing his photos at art shows around the city.
“I describe my work as the intersection between sexuality and spirituality”
Spencer Charles
In 2016, he released his first photography book entitled, “The Muse Book”. The recognition from the book took him to various cities to shoot and display his work. In 2018, he released his 2nd book, “A Subway In Harlem. By this time, he had taken his work internationally to galleries in Paris, Milan, and London. In 2022, he released his 3rd and most recent project, “Blacker Than God”. “Blacker Than God” contains his most conceptual work, displaying the duality between sensuality and spirituality, and blackness as a divine gift from God.
Spencer is currently working on new projects as well as expanding his portfolio to include more photojournalism.
Spencer Charles is a multi-disciplined artist from Newark NJ, currently based in Atlanta GA. His creative journey began as a child with dance and music. He started learning ballet, tap, and jazz at the age of 4. He started learning classical and jazz piano at the age of 10. At the age of 18, he moved to Atlanta, GA to attend Morehouse College on a music scholarship, but quickly changed his major to English as he found a new passion for journalism his freshman year. Outside of campus, Spencer spent his time writing about the underground music and art scene in Atlanta for various blogs and online magazines. Journalism introduced Spencer to the world of photography, as one of his internships required him to purchase a camera.
