Arthur Haywood is an illustrator and muralist from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. His work celebrates the wonder of stories. His paintings are seen on murals for the Philadelphia Mural Arts Program, Summer of Soul film, Sprocket Mural Festival, his book “The Great Library” and Space and Time Magazine. He exhibits his paintings in Paris, New York and Pennsylvania and completes commissions. Creating murals and illustrations to inspire others and engage youth in reading is his passion. He is focused on making murals for libraries and schools in addition to book covers.
He earned a B.F.A in Illustration from The Maryland Institute College of Art, before furthering his study of classical drawing and painting at Cambridge Street Studios in Philadelphia and Grand Central Atelier in New York. He is a recipient of the 2020-2021 Harriet Hale Woolley Scholarship at the Fondation des États-Unis in Paris. There he developed murals to inspire a love of learning and cultural appreciation. He worked with students at Lycée Paul Lapie, Ecollectif and André Malraux Elementary school to create murals depicting students of diverse origins reading and the stories that have engaged them. He is a recipient of the 2022 - 2023 Tulsa Artist Fellowship where he is continuing his series of paintings to inspire reading.