Cbabi (pronounced Kuh-bob-bi) Bayoc is an internationally-known visual artist and illustrator residing in St. Louis, Missouri. Bayoc, whose birth name is Clifford Miskell, Jr., adopted his name Cbabi (Creative-Black-Artist-Battling- Ignorance) during his time at Grambling State University and later legally changed his last name to Bayoc (Blessed-African-Youth-Of-Creativity) as a way of setting the stage of always reminding his future children of their value and worth.
His job as a caricature artist at Six Flags over St. Louis, became the catalyst to Cbabi’s commitment to evolve his art. His commitment to this evolution provided fertile ground for diverse opportunities. Perhaps most synonymous with Cbabi’s name is his 365 Days with Dad series which was his New Year’s resolution to paint a positive image of black fatherhood each day for the entire year. This project was quintessential in starting a dialogue within the community about the importance of a strong foundation and support system for all children, no matter the age. Other fruits of this evolution include being a commissioned muralists for local and national schools, businesses, non-profits and hospitals to paint images depicting the vibrancy and beauty of the people they serve. In addition, this fertile ground opened to allow him to be sought after by actors, athletes and musicians to provide portraits and album covers such as Violator Compilation Vol 1 which features the likeness of Busta Rhymes, Missy Elliott, Foxy Brown, Q-Tip, LL Cool J, Mobb Deep, Fat Joe and Big Pun as well as artwork featured on Prince’s Rainbow Children album. Most new to the evolution is being an illustrator of children’s books.
Cbabi’s goal is to paint the world he wants to see he and your children thrive in. As such, he will always be committed to evolving his art. Stay tuned! There is certainly more to come.