Quotes by Artists

There is something that always will be true about painting and sculpture - that in order to really get it, you have to show up. That is something that is both sad and kind of beautiful about it. It remains analog. It remains special and irreducible. Kehinde Wiley
Sad Beautiful You Will Be True Painting Analog Kind About Something Both Remains True Always Up Get Order Really Sculpture Show Special
My work is a contemporary call to arms. It is time to get our mojo back. To rediscover our true north. Kehinde Wiley
Work Time Back Our True Contemporary Arms Call Rediscover North Get Mojo
I started making work that I assumed would be far too garish, far too decadent, far too black for the world to care about. I, to this day, am thankful to whatever force there is out there that allows me to get away with painting the stories of people like me. Kehinde Wiley
Work Thankful Day Me People World Care Black Whatever Painting Assumed Too Out Would Would-Be About Like Force Making Am Decadent Get Stories Far Away Started
Painting is about the world that we live in. Black men live in the world. My choice is to include them. Kehinde Wiley
World Black Men Live Painting About Them Choice Include
During 1989, my mother, who was exceedingly good at finding these free programs - you know, we were on welfare, just trying to get through - but she would find these amazing programs. She sent me to the Soviet Union at the age of 12 to go study in the forest of then-Leningrad with 50 other Soviet kids. Kehinde Wiley
Good Me You Age Welfare Mother Amazing Free Other Programs Kids Would Find Finding Exceedingly Through Study Know She Go Were Forest Get Trying Soviet Soviet Union Just Sent Union Who
My style is in the 21st century. If you look at the process, it goes from photography through Photoshop, where certain features are heightened, elements of the photo are diminished. There is no sense of truth when you're looking at the painting or the photo or that moment when the photo was first taken. Kehinde Wiley
Truth You Photography First Looking Style Sense Painting Diminished Photo Photoshop Features No Sense Through Taken Look Goes Where Process Century Certain Moment Elements
It's amazing how, in New York, there is almost a feeling of entitlement by the public - this very palpable lack of surprise at being stopped in the street and being asked to be the subject of a 12-foot monumental painting. Kehinde Wiley
Entitlement Amazing Feeling Painting Monumental Almost New How Surprise Subject Very York Lack Stopped New York Being Public Asked Street Palpable
Art in the age of the digital image is completely different from experiencing art in physical form. Kehinde Wiley
Art Age Digital Physical Different Experiencing Form Image
When I thought about the absolute favourite of favourites or what stood for the best of haute couture, it was Givenchy. Kehinde Wiley
Best Thought Favourite Favourites About Absolute Couture Stood
I think it would be really interesting to paint Obama. Kehinde Wiley
Think Obama Would Would-Be Interesting Really Paint
My interest is in completing an image that is spectacular beyond belief. My fidelity is to the image and the art and not to the bragging rights of making every stroke on every flower. I'm realistic. Kehinde Wiley
Art Rights Realistic Every Flower Completing Stroke Beyond Making Bragging Interest Fidelity Belief Image Spectacular
Painting from life is a completely different monster, which I like. But because I've been painting from photography for so long, I've learned my best moves from photography. Kehinde Wiley
Life Best Photography Life Is A Long Painting Monster Like Learned Because Been Different Moves Which
I've fished everywhere I've traveled. Kehinde Wiley
Everywhere Traveled
The performance of black American identity feels very different from actually living in a black body. There's a dissonance between inside and outside. Kehinde Wiley
Black Living Inside Outside Performance Between Feels Identity Very American Different American Identity Body Actually
Branding says a lot about luxury and about exclusion and about the choices that manufacturers make, but I think that what society does with it after it's produced is something else. And the African-American community has always been expert at taking things and repurposing them toward their own ends. Kehinde Wiley
Luxury Own Community Think Society Else Says About Something Something Else Taking Toward Exclusion Make Does Always Been Lot Ends African-American African-American Community After Expert Them Produced Choices Manufacturers Things
My love affair with painting is bittersweet. Kehinde Wiley
Love Painting Bittersweet Affair Love Affair
I think the pairing of your material practice with your subject is something that is the constant concern of every artist for time immemorial. Kehinde Wiley
Time Practice Every Think Immemorial Constant Something Concern Material Subject Artist Your
The erotic and the art historical imagination is something that gets very little play when people talk about my work, and when they rarely do, they try to problematize it. Kehinde Wiley
Work Art People Try Imagination Rarely About Something Talk Historical Very Gets Little Play
My mother introduced to me as a child the world of language: the way in which translation can be a system by which you can understand others. Kehinde Wiley
Me You World Mother Language Translation Others Way System Introduced Understand Child Which
I taught myself to paint African-Americans, mostly people roughly my skin tone. Kehinde Wiley
Myself People Skin Mostly Taught Paint Roughly Tone
I know how young black men are seen. They're boys - scared little boys, oftentimes. I was one of them. I was completely afraid of the Los Angeles Police Department. Kehinde Wiley
Police Black Men Seen Young Scared Angeles Police Department Know Boy How Los Los Angeles Department Oftentimes Afraid Little Them
I am interested in evolution within my thinking. I am not interested in the evolution of my paint. Kehinde Wiley
Thinking Evolution Within Am Not Interested Interested Paint
There's something to be said about the art-industrial complex, the collectors who recognize that your work has some sort of future economic value. Kehinde Wiley
Work Future Value Complex Recognize Collectors Some About Something Economic Sort Said Your Who
The art world has become so insular. The rules have become so autodidactic that, in a sense, they lose track of what people have any interest in thinking about, talking about, or even looking at. Kehinde Wiley
Art People World Looking Become Lose Sense Thinking Rules About Track Insular Talking Art World Any Interest Even
The ability to be the first African-American painter to paint the first African-American president of the United States is absolutely overwhelming. It doesn't get any better than that. Kehinde Wiley
Better First Overwhelming President States Ability Be The First Absolutely Than Get Any African-American Paint Painter United United States
There's something really cool about taking oily coloured paste and pushing it around with these hairy sticks and making something that looks like you. That's the magic of painting. Kehinde Wiley
You Painting Magic About Something Coloured Pushing Taking Hairy Like Looks Around Sticks Making Paste Really Cool
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