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Quote by Kehinde Wiley

“I've had moments where I've met people who were complete, like, idiots, who could not understand visual culture to save their lives.”

Quote by Kehinde Wiley

Author

Kehinde Wiley is a renowned contemporary painter known for his modern interpretations of traditional portraiture. His works typically depict portraits of African Americans, Latinos, and other minorities, blending elements of history, culture, and pop culture. Born in 1977, Wiley's work has had a profound impact on the art world. more

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“There's always a tug of war. Like, in the States, in America, there's certainly a higher quotient, I would imagine, of, like, macho, like, masculinity posturing.”

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Author:Kehinde Wiley

“So sometimes you have to play your hand and sort of push in a direction. And I think that masculinity is the driving point for a lot of the way that people, like, posture in the work.”

People Thinking Way Sometimes Play Hands Driving Masculinity Posture

Author:Kehinde Wiley

“This is - it's a sociological experiment in many ways. And so you're seeing the results of what happens when you put a lot of boys in a room looking at art history.”

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Author:Kehinde Wiley

“That's the trouble with, I think, my - the contemporary read of my work. So many people just simply say, "These are pretty pictures of black boys." They're not really thinking about, like, what the whole thing is.”

People Thinking Whole Black Boys Trouble Contemporary Black Boy Pretty Picture

Author:Kehinde Wiley

“I've met others [people] who simply responded to me, "You're Kehinde Wiley. I know your work. I saw it at the Brooklyn Museum [Brooklyn, NY] And I'd be honored to be in your work."”

People Knows Saws Mets Museums Honored Brooklyn

Author:Kehinde Wiley

“People who - and I think that's been a huge education for me. I think it's a - it's a privilege to be able to meet such a broad cross-section of New York and increasingly the world, and to get a feel of how people respond to visual culture.”

People Thinking World Feels Able Culture New York Huge Crosses Privilege Visuals Broads Sections

Author:Kehinde Wiley

“You know, one of my - one of my best and, I think, most enlightening moments was when I was contacted by Michael Jackson. And he requested that I paint his portrait.”

Thinking Knows Moments Paint Portraits Enlightening

Author:Kehinde Wiley

“In our conversations, he [Michael Jackson] revealed a surprising understanding of art history. We were going through the finer points of the difference between one Italian sculptor to the next. You know, this - these are things that we don't necessarily assume of people in sanctified light.”

People Knows Art Light Next Understanding Differences Conversation Assuming Italian Surprising Sculptors Art History

Author:Kehinde Wiley

“He [Michael Jackson] would choose specific moments. They were art history books that I prefer. They were paintings that he prefers. It's this dance back and forth. We were halfway through the dance. He died.”

Art Book Moments Painting Died Halfway Back And Forth Art History History Books

Author:Kehinde Wiley

“I have a lot of problems with Western European easel painting.”

Problem Painting Western

Author:Kehinde Wiley