JT Daniels in his recent exhibit, “Surviv’n Under Pressure” at Studios Inc (photo by Jim Barcus)
The Kansas City artist and muralist sounds themes of community and inclusion in works on view throughout the city
Muralist and artist JT Daniels paints figures that do not look at the viewer. His characters are turned in profile or off-center, or their eyes are closed.
“I’m more interested in capturing a moment or a feeling rather than direct confrontation with the viewer. It feels more honest that way,” said Daniels, a 2023-26 Studios Inc resident, who recently capped off his three-year residency with a solo show.
Getting to know Daniels, his formative experiences, career growth and art also involves learning about him through more than a direct glance.
Audiences encounter his art in everyday activity. Daniels has painted more than 70 murals solo and dozens more with creative partners. His public art adorns walls and buildings at Betty Rae’s Ice Cream in the River Market, Buffalo State Pizza Co. in the Crossroads, Whole Foods, and in communities citywide. Daniels created a 2017 KC Streetcar public art installation Wait Here. Diversifying to consumer products, his artwork appeared on the label of Lipton Brisk Iced Tea and a limited-edition collaboration with Belgian beer brand Duvel. His custom illustration was vinyl-wrapped onto a Johnson County Library courier vehicle.
Raised in Wyandotte County, Kansas, Daniels studied art in his youth with encouragement from his father and a high school art teacher. Later in life, artists and community leaders such as José Faus, Alisha Gambino and Sike Style provided guidance, introduced opportunities, or became collaborators. Along the way, Daniels reinvested that support by working on youth and community-based arts projects, with organizations such as Mattie Rhodes Center and Johnson County Developmental Supports.
“I like painting in neighborhoods, schools and at nonprofits. I came from a blighted area. We deserve streetlights and beautiful things, too,” said Daniels. “I want the community to resonate with the work I put up.”
Daniels juggled jobs and freelance projects until 2019, when he decided to pursue a full-time art career. Six months later, COVID-19 struck. With a wife and kids to support, Daniels hustled to survive and adapt while the family relied on accumulated savings.
“Quitting my job before COVID was the best decision I made,” said Daniels.
Mural commissions increased in 2020. Younger then, Daniels worked around the clock for weeklong stretches, stopping for a quick meal with family, and sleep. He gradually built a portfolio and clients.
Representation, inclusion and identity remain touchstones in his community-centered art. Daniels draws, paints and assembles artwork in a signature style with these considerations in mind. Forgoing realism, he depicts people using a self-described “cartoon” style so they can “feel seen and see themselves.”
Born to a Black father and white mother, Daniels understood firsthand the feeling of racism and “being on the outside.” Skateboarding in his youth enabled him to belong without judgment.
“It’s the first time I felt like myself around different age groups and nationalities. Asian, Black, white, we could be friends. I like that idea. I grew up thinking America was a melting pot,” said Daniels, whose wife is from El Salvador.
Racism and identity surfaced in other ways that Daniels didn’t fully understand until his late 20s.
Hailing from Iowa, his mother collected black-and-white cow ephemera such as washboards, cupboard lining paper, china plates and art prints.
“She bought new cow prints whenever family would say things that were offensive or racist about her relationship with my father, or when they made remarks about her kids being biracial,” said Daniels. “It was her way of dealing with the world. It influenced me to make black-and-white designs a staple in my fine art practice.”
Displayed at Studios Inc in early 2026, Daniels’s solo exhibition “Surviv’n Under Pressure” amplified personal yet universal themes.
An installation of skateboard ramps, murals, photography and customized Man Made skateboard decks honored his youthful connection to the culture’s kinetic lifestyle and visual language. Skateboards and murals seemingly existed as plain objects and surface imagery; their purpose auto-filled in our mind. Daniels explored deeper meaning in the obvious and commonplace though.
“Skating taught me that nothing is fixed: a staircase isn’t just a staircase, a curb isn’t just a curb. They became opportunities for movement, expression and transformation,” wrote Daniels in his artist statement.
Use of wallpaper, painted symbols and wording like ‘SUP’ (which stands for “Surviving Under Pressure”), alluded to human experience and interiority in his work, where storytelling wasn’t blatant. For instance, the exhibit featured three paintings that Daniels created while he coped with his grandfather’s death in early 2024.
“For me, the paintings were a way to work through my unresolved feelings, which did lead me to begin researching my feelings towards existentialism. I became disenfranchised with the church and was searching for a place where, I guess, my feelings towards self-spirituality and the world around me, made more sense,” said Daniels.
In another gallery, a series of multimedia illustrations and collages represented people who Daniels encountered throughout the urban community. He devised a visual language that functioned within a limited, standardized canvas. Formed from discarded items and found materials, each collage held space for individual identity and defied stereotypes of a homogenous group.
With “Surviv’n Under Pressure,” JT Daniels showcased ongoing creative development aligned with deeply meaningful themes. From sketchbook to mural to gallery, he captures humanity through personal experience and community interaction that resonates in a conflicted world where we all reside.
For more information, www.jtdanielsart.com.
