His paintings have been dubbed a combination of “European portraiture meets hip-hop culture.” He finds young, black males in urban environments (usually Harlem) and has them pose in positions of their choosing from a number of famous Western paintings. These paintings come from portraits done between the 16th – 19th centuries, painted by the likes of Titian, Ingres, Reynolds, Tiepolo and others.
He paints the men in the same poses as the people in the classical pieces, but wearing the same outfits he finds them in; often times wearing baseball hats, athletic jerseys, and oversized jeans. His paintings are done in hyper-realism, with thick paint and lush lighting, and the works include styles from the Renaissance painters, French rococo painters, as well as urban graffiti artists. He also creates unique, psychedelic, and ornate backgrounds for all of his pieces.
Seeing as how the historical paintings on which he bases his paintings were all done of rich aristocrats or glorified generals or the like, the Africa-American men in his paintings are usually seen as powerful, heroic, grand, wealthy, and inspiring. These qualities also come about because of the sheer size of the paintings, some over 9 feet tall.
Some questions come to my mind when looking at his work that I will pose to all of you. These include, but aren’t limited to:
How do you feel about the backgrounds of each piece? What do they add to the paintings, if anything? Do the natural themes of the men collide in a good way or bad way with the artificial shapes in the background?
Do you think the statement “European portraiture meets hip-hop culture” is accurate when describing his work?
What do you think Wiley is trying to say about class, wealth, oppression, power and race in his work? Could he be saying these men will never actually achieve this power in society, and thus the dream can only be captured in a painting, or could he possibly be trying to get these men to strive to reach this goal?
Would you consider his detailed portraits of Africa-Americans in positions of power (which may also invoke a sense of envy) to be unique and original? If so, is this why they are so popular? Is it possible that even he not know what these pieces are trying to say, but may just have created them to put a contemporary viewpoint on famous historical paintings?
Aside from the different themes and subjects, do you think his style of painting and painting technique mimics those of the great portrait painters of the 16th, 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries? If not, how are they different?
Feel free to answer any or all of these.
5 comments:
I think that the paintings by Wiley are empowering because they force conversations about power, class, and race. The extent of improvement in society towards issues of race and class are held in question here. African American males are placed in positions of power, and one must negotiate one's feelings towards these visuals. I suppose I cynically see it as a commentary on the stereotypes and imbalance of power in society, although the paintings are inspiring.
During our class discussion, David mentioned that maybe Wiley is critiquing hip hop culture. The reference to hip hop culture could be seen in the dress of the individuals. Also, there is the theme of power and prestige in the history of these paintings, which is a focus of 'hip hop culture.' I only mention this because different perspectives should be encouraged (not immediately rejected) in discussions. The Renaissance (where the original paintings mostly come from) was an excessive time period where the wealthy and powerful flaunted their lifestyle (i.e. cavalier culture, masques, patrons). This could possibly be a part of a conversation in Wiley's work.
We spoke a little bit during the presentation about the backgrounds of Wiley's paintings, and what they mean, and how they influence meaning in the paintings. When I looked at Wiley's paintings knowing that the men in them were mimicking the poses of old classical paintings, I wondered why the backgrounds weren't mimicked as well. Why not just put the men in the painting? Would the meaning be different that way? I thought about this, and I wondered if maybe the patterned backgrounds were meant to emphasize the figure. We as the viewers are forced to try and understand the figure, especially knowing the titles of the paintings as the classical ones. I think about the meanings of power in how people are posed in paintings, and what associations we make to how men of power have been portrayed in history.
I too wondered about the background in Wiley's paintings. I don't think that they need their original backgrounds and that the ornate patters enhance the figures. By looking at the poses it is obvious, to me, that Wiley is expressing the power and authority of the everyday man. Like we touched upon in class I believe that Wiley is speaking about issues of race and class through his subjects. The patterned background surrounds and sometimes overwhelms the figures much like the encompassing issues. In my opinion Wiley is depicting the dominance and stature of the African American male in todays society, and it is great. I just wonder why he hasn't depicted any women in his paintings...
I think that Wiley uses an inventive way of connecting history and modern day culture in his work. Since his work reflects African American figures in ornate, often overwhelmingly detailed/ graphic backgrounds, he creates an interesting conflict between historical representations of art/design and of African American roles in society. He places the figures in powerful and strong positions, with a historical backdrop/setting, usually with a hip hop/ street spin. Therefore, he clashes two socio norms that otherwise run separate: for instance, historically, African Americans in art were depicted as subordinant, never enacting the power role, and in his work, we see a modern spin on the same artistic feel, however, the power role now belongs to the modern day African American male. I feel that the artist is opening our eyes to ideas that our society needs to look at and to accept, allowing us to recognize all spins taken on contemporary art.
However, I do find it interesting that the artist depicts solely MEN, not women, in his depictions of triumph, pride, power, and strength...
I think the extremely ornate and decorative elements of the background add a certain "regality" (okay not a word) to the paintings. obviously the figures of these paintings aren't typically portrayed in the art that we see in art history classes. and even more, i dont think it's very often that we see "African American" (excuse the quotes, i dont really agree with that "politically correct" title) men portrayed in even modern art...especially in this way. i dont really think that their stances are COMPLETELY out of the ordinary (with the exception of that crazy white horse one) but i think the background in contrast adds a very different feeling. I think that I would expect to see these men, particular with their "hip hop" style of clothing in magazine adds or just walking down the street but my putting them in the context of a museum or gallery wall, in addition to the great size of the canvas and decorative background elements, Wiley is introducing the culture to another social space.
i mean, i can't help but think about the traditions of portraits in the first place, particularly when it comes to the portraits that Wiley is mimicking. They were paintings of rich, powerful, authoritative white men. And I think there is a lot to be said about replacing the image of these rich white old men with young "urban" men. I wonder if Wiley is suggesting that today, the young black man is changing the face of the traditional and becoming the old white man with power...or if this is something he wants to make happen, via his artwork.
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