Kehinde Wiley: A New Republic presents a stunning retrospective of this artist’s prolific career through nearly 60 paintings and sculptures. Kehinde Wiley’s work raises intriguing questions about race, gender, and the politics of representation by portraying contemporary African American men and women using the conventions of traditional European portraiture. Appropriating the format of specific paintings by renowned masters ranging from Titian to Édouard Manet, Wiley often depicts his subjects wearing sneakers, hoodies, and other gear associated with today’s hip-hop culture and sets them against ornate decorative backgrounds that evoke earlier eras and cultures.
By replacing the European aristocrats with contemporary black subjects, Wiley’s portraits draw attention to the absence of African Americans from historical and cultural narratives. Kehinde Wiley: A New Republic is organized by the Brooklyn Museum and curated by Eugenie Tsai, John and Barbara Vogelstein Curator of Contemporary Art at the Brooklyn Museum. Dr. Sarah Eckhardt, Associate Curator of Modern and Contemporary Art, is the coordinating curator at VMFA.
Kehinde Wiley (American, b. 1977). Houdon Paul-Louis, 2011. Bronze with polished stone base, 34 x 26 x 19 in. (86.4 x 66 x 48.3 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Frank L. Babbott Fund and A. Augustus Healy Fund, 2012.51. (Photo: Sarah DeSantis, Brooklyn Museum)
The list below represents sponsors of Kehinde Wiley: A New Republic as of March 2016. For further information about sponsoring this exhibition or making a gift to the VMFA Exhibition Fund, please contact Jayne Shaw, Director of Development, at 804.340.5529 or jayne.shaw@VMFA.museum.
Presented by _________________
The Julia Louise Reynolds Fund
___________________
Ivan Jecklin and Allison Weinstein
Carole and Marcus Weinstein
Norfolk Southern Corporation
Pam and Bill Royall
Mary and Don Shockey
___________________
Richmond (VA) Chapter, The Links, Incorporated
The national tour of Kehinde Wiley: A New Republic is made possible
by the Henry Luce Foundation and the National Endowment for the Arts.
Chance, Choice and Kehinde Wiley’s 21st Century Portraiture
June 30, 2016 — Catherine Komp
More than 50 works by globally-acclaimed artist Kehinde Wiley are on display at the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts. The artist has filled museum and collectors’ walls with large-scale paintings that depict people of color in grand and regal ways. Catherine Komp has more for Virginia Currents. Listen to the interview here.
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Kehinde Wiley - A New Republic
Filled with reproductions of Kehinde Wiley’s bold, colorful, and monumental work, this book encompasses the artist’s various series of paintings as well as his sculptural work—which boldly explore ideas about race, power, and tradition.
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In June visitors will see Kehinde Wiley’s “A New Republic,” a collection of portraits that explores themes such as race, gender and politics. Read More…