The Jury is Out for the de Young Open! I did not get in. But maybe you did?

#bayareaart #art #bayarea #deyoung

An art recommendation for today.

There’s a spectacular exhibit at the de Young of Kehinde Wilde’s recent work, which boggles the mind not only in its ambition and scale (a sculpture fills a room; a painting is billboard sized; so many works of such magnificence done a short period), technical ability, and somber, funereal staging (the paintings are seen in dark rooms on dark walls, under direct lighting that makes them appear to be glowing like stained glass), but also in its unflinchingly direct message about the macabre history and present day experience of racism in this country.

What beautiful, moving work, cloaked in modern homages to classical art. An incredible, important artist of our time. Last night after seeing the show, I looked up the titles of a number of the pieces to see their namesakes. A worthy rabbit hole to dive into.

I love that Obama asked this man to paint his official portrait. So powerful.

See it if you can.

#deYoung #KehindeWilde #SystemicRacism #art

https://www.famsf.org/exhibitions/kehinde-wiley-an-archaeology-of-silence

I’m very much looking forward to visiting the de Young to see this important Kehinde Wiley show.

You may be familiar with his work only via his fantastic official portrait of Obama for the National Portrait Gallery, but this body of work speaks directly to systemic violence against Black people in the United States, using powerful references to classical art in a modern setting.

“Wiley made the pieces, an extension of his body of work called “Down,” in the months following the 2020 killing of George Floyd while in police custody. ... Just eight models were used for the more than two dozen pieces, building a sense of familiarity for visitors as they pass through the exhibition. When the pieces were shown at the Venice Biennale, some attendees wept and reached out to touch the hands of the sculptures.”

Gift link to article below, which also talks about how museums are handling exhibitions that may be painful viewing for audiences.

#KehindeWiley #art #deYoung #SFBA #BLM #BlackArtists

https://www.nytimes.com/2023/03/16/arts/design/kehinde-wiley-de-young-museum.html?unlocked_article_code=bbGEUlnYKH1AnlxF5vR7i_LeYv-Cxk2VUgSneNU9Ln7Eulsy6eXx5EW5uVqDdzKikxe29J8Qa5mmBGx-q6BD_N0hQm65Vcsuzg7O9SEeuIIZYrrEcC2PodtpiqoeQJmxHft7uPtIESbEPLW3MxHFH9Ktzk6poOs3m9dvnnaKv1G7HrwheRcQ6_4mVeqC2_TYUknJOTDrjE4DS6k-CoWH6TStFQGN-JH65avmkfq8hBPJs9Ym1ZhYJOFxtpmXbCfwmSOfXW0PCbm1ZxR5nyxE-hfGZTC-jwCN8RLff-_c8_M9FZtgHo58h0Z6CkjTrlBCyCczco3LKFvqD_uU7JB7L6S62CmYjhCYug&smid=url-share

#Haiga #deYoung #ramsès #shelley

Beautiful #architecture in #sanfrancisco near the #deYoung museum. #blackandwhitephotography #photography #bnw