Kehinde Wiley’s oil painting is giving a twist to the classical European paintings by substituting a white man with an African American one. I interpret this as him showing us that we live in a new world, one where black culture will be recognized. The man he painted is wearing modern clothing such as timberland boots and a bandana. The history of African Americans was never on the same level of importance as European’s, so Wiley decided to include them on his own, it just took so long that now we’re wearing the latest fashion.
Episode 1 of John Berger’s “Ways of Seeing” will be referred to, to discuss the manipulation of an image to deliver a message. I’ll explain in detail how Wiley took a contemporary portrait of Napoleon an altered it to prove a point. Episode 3 will be used to discuss the history behind oil paintings and the power and wealth they displayed in Europe. Wiley purposely did an oil painting to relate back to the time period and giving black people power.
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This is great. Be sure to be specific about what you mean by your evaluation that Wiley wants to “prove a point.” What is the point exactly? Also, what kind of recognition does he depict for black culture?