Another way of looking at portraiture

A very stormy day in the NW…perfect for a museum visit.    it was a fabulous treat to get picked up and taken with our younger son and his family to the Seattle Art Museum’s exhibition of Kehinde Wiley’s New Republic….H and I even got to listen to most of the docent’s talk, the boys caught some of it and there was plenty else to keep them interested.    It’s all about changing the way black and brown Americans (and more recently on the world stage) were not seen in classical portraiture and will now be presented to the world in a different way.    Wiley “street casts” his subject, brings them to his studio for a collaboration on how they may want to be seen in the world , takes their picture, either in the street dress of their choice, and /or measures them for couture clothing, and paints them monumentally.  The backgrounds of many of these are decorative 19th C. patterns,  (William Morris wallpaper) a way of also elevating the so called “decorative arts” to fine art.  (I like this!)  

So many complex ideas from this young black artist.  HERE is a good website if you are interested….the exhibition here is called “the New Republic” and there’s a part where he talks about the works.   And all of his other series too. 

The blip is Nik looking at Morpheus, a 2008 9’x18’ painting, one of 8 in his “Down” series,  based on a 18th century french SCULPTURE  

The extra is Oskar in front of one of the the “Rumors of War” equestrian  portraits  “Colonal Platoff on his Charger”    Both the boys (and their parents) liked the show altho Oskar’s favorite was the Lakers Uniform.   

The power is out all over north and south Seattle, in both our sons’ neighborhoods…. but here so far so good… will have to check in with our houseboat friends!

And yes, it was delightful to be INVITED to take photos in this exhibition!