There's something really cool about taking oily coloured paste and pushing it around with these hairy sticks and making something that looks like you. That's the magic of painting.
Kehinde WileyRead
This idea that my work is about hip-hop is a little reductive. What I'm interested in is the performance of masculinity, the performance of ethnicity, and how they intermingle across cultures.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote emphasizes that the artist's work transcends hip-hop, focusing instead on broader themes of masculinity and ethnicity within cultural contexts.
Kehinde Wiley emphasizes that while his work is often associated with hip-hop, the true essence lies in exploring the intricacies of masculinity and ethnicity. By examining how these identities interact and influence each other across different cultures, Wiley invites viewers to appreciate the deeper narratives present in his art, moving beyond a singular classification to highlight the complexity of cultural expression.
Themes
MasculinityEthnicityCulturePerformanceArtHip-Hop
In practice
Example use cases
In a discussion about contemporary art at a gallery opening.
More from Kehinde Wiley
All quotes →What is portraiture? It's choice. It's the ability to position your body in the world for the world to celebrate you on your own terms.
Kehinde WileyRead
The ability to be the first African-American painter to paint the first African-American president of the United States is absolutely overwhelming. It doesn't get any better than that.
Kehinde WileyRead
Painting is about the world that we live in. Black men live in the world. My choice is to include them.
Kehinde WileyRead
What I try to do is defy expectations in terms of boundaries, whether it is high or low art, pop culture, or fine-art culture. My work is about reconciling myriad cultural influences and bringing them into one picture.
Kehinde WileyRead
There is something that always will be true about painting and sculpture - that in order to really get it, you have to show up. That is something that is both sad and kind of beautiful about it. It remains analog. It remains special and irreducible.
Kehinde WileyRead
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