Kehinde Wiley is a prolific and successful contemporary American artist. Since the beginning of his illustrious career, Wiley’s established trademark represents dualities in his monumental photo-realistic painted portraits. He portrays urban African Americans from the diaspora in a persona reflective of European and American high class culture, Biblical figures, or Christian saints. Framed within the context of hip-hop culture, originally Wiley only portrayed young African American males. With growing critical acclaim, Wiley began to include in his repertoire of portraits images of females.
This paper will examine Wiley’s multi-layered identities in his female portraits as well as his complex preparatory work in producing the final painting. It will investigate the following selection processes used by Wiley for: the female subjects, the subjects’ attire, the figural compositions inspired by classic art history artworks, and the designs for the environments. This paper will attempt to demonstrate that Wiley’s paintings of popular culture express an extraction of global identities as well as both cultural and gender dualities.
About the presenterSharon Pruitt
Professor of Art History, East Carolina University
Ph.D., The Ohio State University in art history (majored in African art; minored in both American and Islamic art) M.A., Howard University in African Studies (specialized in African art history) B.S., Case Western Reserve University and the Cleveland Institute of Art (Art Education)
Research and anthology publications: 19th and 20th century African American; traditional and contemporary African art.
Fulbright-Hayes research award, the art of Kenya.
Taught in Italy.