Famous American artist Kehinde Wiley is set to present his first solo exhibition in London in three years. Titled “Fragments from the treasure house of darkness,” the show will be held at Stephen Friedman Gallery from October 3 to November 9, 2024. You can view the location on a map here.
The exhibition opened on Wednesday, October 2, with a reception that lasted from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. According to the press release, Wiley finds inspiration from various artistic influences, including French Rococo and Dutch wax prints.
A Little Background on Kehinde Wiley
Kehinde Wiley, born in Los Angeles and now residing in New York, is a 47-year-old portrait painter with Nigerian heritage. He attended art classes during his childhood and later studied at an art conservatory in Russia. In 2001, Yale University School of Art awarded him a scholarship to pursue his MFA, and in 2024, Yale University conferred an honorary DFA on Wiley.
Overall, Wiley typically paints portraits of black men and women in the style of Old Master paintings. He became well-known for painting the official portrait of Barack Obama in 2018. Since then, numerous institutions have featured his works in surveys.
What You Need To Know About Wiley’s Exhibition
For this solo exhibition, Wiley has created two multi-part paintings and a series of 60 miniature portraits. These works explore the concept of scale in art, with Wiley creating miniature versions of his typically large-scale portraits. The artist’s decision is deliberate as he states that this approach encourages viewers to “question their preconceptions of the correlation between size and power in art history.”
Furthermore, Wiley met the subjects for this series at the University of Lagos, Nigeria. The paintings will showcase multiple young people against the artist’s characteristic floral backgrounds, presented in oversized oval and rectangular frames reminiscent of portrait styles from the 1500s.
What Else is Kehinde Wiley Involved In?
Kehinde Wiley is currently facing a huge scandal as Ghanaian visual artist Joseph Awuah-Darko, aka Okuntakinte, has accused him of sexual assault. On May 19, Awuah-Darko posted on Instagram, alleging that Wiley assaulted him twice on June 9, 2021, during a dinner at the Noldor Artist Residency in Ghana.
Additionally, the 28-year-old wrote in the caption,
“On 9th June 2021 — I was sexually assaulted by @kehindewiley. It almost destroyed me.” He added, “The only ideal sexual abuse victim is a dead one, but I’m not going anywhere. I’m here to face it. I’m here. To those who have above all believed me, sat with me, embraced me and seen me – Thank you. 🙏🏿🖤.”
However, Wiley is still denying the allegations to date. In a statement, he said,
“Someone I had a brief, consensual relationship with is now making false, disturbing, and defamatory accusations about our time together.” He added, “These claims are deeply hurtful to me, and I will pursue all legal options to bring the truth to light and clear my name.”
Wiley also revealed on Instagram that Awuah-Darko had maintained friendly contact with him since their meeting, including attending Wiley’s exhibition at the de Young Museum in San Francisco approximately a year ago.
Nevertheless, neither party has undertaken formal legal proceedings as of now, and the situation continues to develop. Currently, Joseph Awuah-Darko is hosting an exhibition titled “How’s Your Day Going?” at Ed Cross Fine Art in London. It will be open for viewing until the 19th of this month.
