rose_peterson's review against another edition
5.0
I'm obsessed with Kehinde Wiley, and this book allowed me to indulge my obsession. Looking at his artwork alone is a transformative experience, but reading the words of those who have studied it on a deeper level is truly enlightening.
This book was vital because it awakened my critical senses. I found myself formulating essay titles and theses, furiously asking questions, and copying thought-provoking quotes while I worked my way through the written portion of this book. I don't read much art criticism, but A New Republic makes me want to start. (And I may start by sifting through the bibliography from this book. Several critics quoted lead me to suspect I could write an essay titled "'Difficult Subject Matter': Thinly-Veiled Racism in the Criticism of Kehinde Wiley's Art," but I need some more evidence before I can prove that.)
I had to sub for a class while I was reading this book, so I brought it with me as an impromptu lesson plan, and the kids loved it. I asked them to list words that came to mind when they saw Wiley's paintings. They made an extensive list: power, royalty, tough, brave, flexin, strong, warrior, confident, men, lead, black, different, show out, pure, proud. I'm going to buy my own copy of this book and display Wiley's artwork in my classroom; my kids deserve to feel every one of those adjectives every single day.
This book was vital because it awakened my critical senses. I found myself formulating essay titles and theses, furiously asking questions, and copying thought-provoking quotes while I worked my way through the written portion of this book. I don't read much art criticism, but A New Republic makes me want to start. (And I may start by sifting through the bibliography from this book. Several critics quoted lead me to suspect I could write an essay titled "'Difficult Subject Matter': Thinly-Veiled Racism in the Criticism of Kehinde Wiley's Art," but I need some more evidence before I can prove that.)
I had to sub for a class while I was reading this book, so I brought it with me as an impromptu lesson plan, and the kids loved it. I asked them to list words that came to mind when they saw Wiley's paintings. They made an extensive list: power, royalty, tough, brave, flexin, strong, warrior, confident, men, lead, black, different, show out, pure, proud. I'm going to buy my own copy of this book and display Wiley's artwork in my classroom; my kids deserve to feel every one of those adjectives every single day.
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