Despite having never painted women, Kehinde Wiley has decided to do so in collaboration with none other than Riccardo Tisci, who will design the dressses of the women he's painting. These will be for his first show at Sean Kelly Gallery titled "An Economy of Grace." Wiley has explored art history in the context of masculinity up until this point, so his paintings of women are highly anticipated. His artist statement clarifies the decision further:
“I am painting women in order to come to terms with the depictions of gender within the context of art history...This series of works attempt to reconcile the presence of black female stereotypes that surrounds their presence and/or absence in art history, and the notions of beauty, spectacle, and the ‘grand’ painting.”
[Artinfo]
