Charles Curtis Blackwell is a jazz poet and a playwright, performance and visual artist. His published plays and poetry include Is, the Color of Mississippi Mud and The Fiery Response to Love's Callings among other works. He has also produced three spoken-word CDs in collaboration with jazz drummer Billy Toliver. His paintings have been shown from coast to coast and have received multiple awards. In 2009 he was one of three featured artists at Lighthouse for the Blind's 20th anniversary Insights exhibit in San Francisco. The show included over 20 of his works on paper and the event and Blackwell's artwork were featured in The New York Times. Currently he resides in the San Francisco area, and he has organized writers' workshops and community cultural arts events for the Faithful Fools agency and The Hospitality Community Arts program in San Francisco's Tenderloin neighborhood.