Glenn Ligon: America, at the Whitney
http://www.thirteen.org/sundayarts/blog/museums/glenn-ligon-america-at-the-whitney/1093/
Glenn Ligon: Americabrings into clear focus this New York native’s work in a incisive mid-career survey at the Whitney. Ligon doesn’t rank among the flashiest of contemporary artists, but has steadily balanced powerful content with stunning form to deliver an epiphany both of-the-moment and in tune with history. The exhibition was organized by Whitney curator Scott Rothkopf and runs through June 5.
While his voice is unique, evidence of varied influences abound in his work. Ligon, African American, frequently takes text (often about identity) as a starting point, referencing authors such as Zora Neale Hurston, Ralph Ellison, and Mary Shelley. He plumbs Richard Pryor’s stand-up routines for punchlines, and stencils vibrantly colored letters atop contrasting fields to create visual vibrations, words that laugh off the canvas. Stenciled matrices of letters, many in grayscale hues, can resemble word search puzzles, or Jasper Johns paintings; black letters merge with black backgrounds, muting language and becoming intriguing shapes in relief. Silk-screened self-portraits and small sketches of beauty products evoke Andy Warhol. Ligon admits being ambivalently and strongly affected by Robert Mapplethorpe’s infamous portraits of black men inNotes on the Margin of the Black Book, which pairs the photos with mixed comments from notable observers, many questioning the validity/appropriateness of Mapplethorpe’s project to begin with.
No comments:
Post a Comment