Exhibiting Forgiveness
January 25, 2024 9:18 AM Subscribe
'Exhibiting Forgiveness', directed by artist Titus Kaphar, premiered at Sundance last weeekend (Variety review by Owen Gleiberman, Q&A at ABCNews by Lindsay Bahr). This is the artist's second film to appear at Sundance, after last year's documentary 'Shut Up And Paint' (Oscar Contender ‘Shut Up And Paint’ Reveals Dilemma Of Artist Titus Kaphar, Whose Work Is Valued, But His Message Not, Matthew Carey in Deadline).
This review of 'Shut Up and Paint' from Melissa Smith in Artnet wins the prize for most enraging quote: “Do you worry that with visible moves like these,” a reporter asks Kaphar in a clip included in the documentary, “that woke culture has gone too far? And that political correctness shouldn’t be dictating what we see and what we consume?”
These films are the latest in a remarkable career grounded in activism and engaging in the history of race in America and in art. Below, a staccato history of Kaphar's works, arranged in loose chronological order.
2014-2015: The Jerome Project. "Painted mostly between 2014-2015, Kaphar created a series of devotional-style portraits of the men, drawing on his considerable knowledge of several centuries of Renaissance and Byzantine religious painting. He painted the panels with gold-leaf backgrounds and then partially submerged them in tanks of tar."
2014, article from 2018: Behind the Myth of Benevolence “This painting is about Thomas Jefferson and Sally Hemings, and yet it is not,” Kaphar said. “The reason I say, ‘And yet it is not,’ is because we know from the actual history that Sally Hemings was very fair. Very, very fair. The woman who sits here is not just simply a representation of Sally Hemings, she’s more of a symbol of many of the Black women whose stories have been shrouded by the narratives of our deified founding fathers.” Article by Victoria Valentine in Culturetype.
2016: Enough About You, a rejoinder to a painting of Elihu Yale with a black child wearing a collar and padlock around his neck and a challenge to the institution where Kaphar received his degree (A reckoning with our past, Yale examines its historical ties with slavery.)
2017 TED talk: In an unforgettable live workshop, Kaphar takes a brush full of white paint to a replica of a 17th-century Frans Hals painting, obscuring parts of the composition and bringing its hidden story into view. Can Art Amend History?
2018 MacArthur Grant Recipient
March 27, 2019: Titus Kaphar on Putting Black Figures Back Into Art History and His Solution for the Problem of Confederate Monuments (Interview on artnet.com, by Trouillot): “ I think an important part of the conversation is to take those sculptures off of their pedestals, but leave them in the squares and bring those contemporary artists to the space. Put out some request for proposals, engage the community, and get artists making pieces that they feel speak to the future. Those areas then become spaces of civic dialogue, places where we can commit to having those difficult conversations that are absolutely necessary for us to have if we’re actually going to advance.”
April 12 2019 Patricia Leigh Brown in the NYT writes a profile of his initiative NXTHVN (for “Next Haven”), a $12 million nonprofit arts incubator and fellowship program he founded to nurture rising talents.... NXTHVN (for “Next Haven”), a $12 million nonprofit arts incubator and fellowship program he founded to nurture rising talents.
June 24 2020: I cannot sell you this painting TIME Magazine cover about George Floyd.
June 2020: Video, Can beauty open our hearts to difficult conversations?
October 2020: In a deconsecrated church in Brussels, American painter Titus Kaphar confronts representation in Renaissance iconography. Here, we offer a virtual walkthrough of the artist’s solo show, ‘The Evidence of Things Unseen’ by Pei-Ru Ken in Wallpaper.
Nov. 2020 WSJ Magazine: Artist Titus Kaphar Is Creating a New Artistic Canon by Tiana Reed
Artist's website: https://tituskaphar.com
Selected works: https://www.kapharstudio.com/work/
Previously
This review of 'Shut Up and Paint' from Melissa Smith in Artnet wins the prize for most enraging quote: “Do you worry that with visible moves like these,” a reporter asks Kaphar in a clip included in the documentary, “that woke culture has gone too far? And that political correctness shouldn’t be dictating what we see and what we consume?”
These films are the latest in a remarkable career grounded in activism and engaging in the history of race in America and in art. Below, a staccato history of Kaphar's works, arranged in loose chronological order.
2014-2015: The Jerome Project. "Painted mostly between 2014-2015, Kaphar created a series of devotional-style portraits of the men, drawing on his considerable knowledge of several centuries of Renaissance and Byzantine religious painting. He painted the panels with gold-leaf backgrounds and then partially submerged them in tanks of tar."
2014, article from 2018: Behind the Myth of Benevolence “This painting is about Thomas Jefferson and Sally Hemings, and yet it is not,” Kaphar said. “The reason I say, ‘And yet it is not,’ is because we know from the actual history that Sally Hemings was very fair. Very, very fair. The woman who sits here is not just simply a representation of Sally Hemings, she’s more of a symbol of many of the Black women whose stories have been shrouded by the narratives of our deified founding fathers.” Article by Victoria Valentine in Culturetype.
2016: Enough About You, a rejoinder to a painting of Elihu Yale with a black child wearing a collar and padlock around his neck and a challenge to the institution where Kaphar received his degree (A reckoning with our past, Yale examines its historical ties with slavery.)
2017 TED talk: In an unforgettable live workshop, Kaphar takes a brush full of white paint to a replica of a 17th-century Frans Hals painting, obscuring parts of the composition and bringing its hidden story into view. Can Art Amend History?
2018 MacArthur Grant Recipient
March 27, 2019: Titus Kaphar on Putting Black Figures Back Into Art History and His Solution for the Problem of Confederate Monuments (Interview on artnet.com, by Trouillot): “ I think an important part of the conversation is to take those sculptures off of their pedestals, but leave them in the squares and bring those contemporary artists to the space. Put out some request for proposals, engage the community, and get artists making pieces that they feel speak to the future. Those areas then become spaces of civic dialogue, places where we can commit to having those difficult conversations that are absolutely necessary for us to have if we’re actually going to advance.”
April 12 2019 Patricia Leigh Brown in the NYT writes a profile of his initiative NXTHVN (for “Next Haven”), a $12 million nonprofit arts incubator and fellowship program he founded to nurture rising talents.... NXTHVN (for “Next Haven”), a $12 million nonprofit arts incubator and fellowship program he founded to nurture rising talents.
June 24 2020: I cannot sell you this painting TIME Magazine cover about George Floyd.
June 2020: Video, Can beauty open our hearts to difficult conversations?
October 2020: In a deconsecrated church in Brussels, American painter Titus Kaphar confronts representation in Renaissance iconography. Here, we offer a virtual walkthrough of the artist’s solo show, ‘The Evidence of Things Unseen’ by Pei-Ru Ken in Wallpaper.
Nov. 2020 WSJ Magazine: Artist Titus Kaphar Is Creating a New Artistic Canon by Tiana Reed
Artist's website: https://tituskaphar.com
Selected works: https://www.kapharstudio.com/work/
Previously
I've seen a couple of works from Kaphar's asphalt and chalk drawings series in person thanks to my local art museums, but haven't yet had the pleasure of seeing any of his others that I can recall. Also looking forward to looking through these links and interviews!
posted by Strange Interlude at 1:09 PM on January 25
posted by Strange Interlude at 1:09 PM on January 25
That Hemmings/Jefferson artwork is amazing
posted by thegirlwiththehat at 1:28 PM on January 25 [2 favorites]
posted by thegirlwiththehat at 1:28 PM on January 25 [2 favorites]
I have seen Enough About You before and I love it more every time. I love what he's doing.
You can watch Shut Up and Paint on PBS.
posted by emjaybee at 2:04 PM on January 25 [2 favorites]
You can watch Shut Up and Paint on PBS.
posted by emjaybee at 2:04 PM on January 25 [2 favorites]
Thanks for this. It’s always on my mind
posted by toodleydoodley at 2:18 PM on January 25 [1 favorite]
posted by toodleydoodley at 2:18 PM on January 25 [1 favorite]
« Older Storm in a Teacup | “AI” George Carlin Sucks For Every Reason You... Newer »
This thread has been archived and is closed to new comments
What extraordinary work.
(Weirdly, neither of the last two links shows me much - I just get a logo header and a blank white page - so I can't browse the images easily, although I can see some in the Media tab in my browser).
The Jerome Project is amazing.
In the Time Magazine piece he says "You will never be as eloquent as Baldwin" but I disagree.
He has so much to say, and he says it with so much strength and beauty.
I don't think I'd ever seen his work before today.
Thank you so much for sharing this thoughtfully crafted collection of links, bq. I am so glad to know a bit about Kaphar now, and to have this invitation to spend more time with his work, and I am really grateful to you.
posted by kristi at 11:26 AM on January 25 [2 favorites]