Two weeks before the close of classes, at the Altos de Chavón School of Art and Design, they had a very special visit. It was the famous American artist Kehinde Wiley, who having heard about Chavón’s school decided to visit them for a full day!
Kehinde Wiley is an extraordinary painter currently very important on the contemporary art scene in the United States and abroad for his iconoclastic take-off on historic paintings with “new” casting. Accordingly to Stephen Kaplan (rector of the school), he had been invited to the Dominican Republic by the USA Embassy to work on a mural for the new consulate being built in Santo Domingo.
“Having heard about the Altos de Chavón School of Art and Design and having decided the he wanted to depict “Dominican Artists” in the mural, he visited us with his entourage of photographers and assistants,” Kaplan said.
Kehinde sharing with the students of Chavon
Kaplan explained that Kehinde´s staff were duly impressed with the student work and photographed about 20 students for possible inclusion in the mural – a homage to the Dominican Artist.
“Most importantly he took ample time to discuss each students work with him or her. That was momentous for the students, having studied his work previously in Raul’s contemporary art class without ever imagining they’d actually be meeting him,” he said.
“Kehinde assured us that he would return to Chavón and was most eager to do all he could to help our students with their careers in art,” he added.
Pictures contributed by Stephen Kaplan, thank you!
About Kehinde Wiley:
Los Angeles native and New York based visual artist, Kehinde Wiley has firmly situated himself within art history’s portrait painting tradition. Wiley’s paintings often blur the boundaries between traditional and contemporary modes of representation. Rendered in a realistic mode–while making references to specific Old Master paintings–Wiley creates a fusion of period styles, ranging from French Rococo, Islamic architecture and West African textile design to urban hip hop and the “Sea Foam Green” of a Martha Stewart Interiors color swatch. Wiley’s slightly larger than life size figures are depicted in a heroic manner, as their poses connote power and spiritual awakening. Wiley’s portrayal of masculinity is filtered through these poses of power and spirituality.
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