Black artist leading religious school forward (6)
I believe the answer is:
brazen
'forward' is the definition.
(I've seen this in another clue)
'black artist leading religious school' is the wordplay.
'black' becomes 'b' (as in pencil classifications).
'artist' becomes 'RA' (Royal Academician, member of Royal Academy of Arts).
'leading' is a charade indicator (letters next to each other).
'religious school' becomes 'zen' (school of Buddhism).
'b'+'ra'+'zen'='BRAZEN'
(Other definitions for brazen that I've seen before include "Bold-faced" , "Unashamedly flagrant" , "Impudent, shameless" , "Insolent, barefaced" , "Shameless and bold - resembling brass" .)