Ken gonzales day biography of martin luther

  • As an artist, I am very interested in the question of historical memory and how things are remembered -or forgotten — and how people and places.
  • Works by Ken Gonzales-Day.
  • Seeking to underscore a seemingly absent history, Ken Gonzales-Day altered 19th and 20th century postcards of lynchings in the American West.

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    Media only:  Concetta Duncan  (202) 633-9989, duncanc@si.edu
                          Gabrielle Obusek (202) 633-8299, obusekge@si.edu

    The National Portrait Gallery’s “Portraiture Now” series showcases some of the most creative portrait artists of the 21st century. Hosted on the museum’s first floor in one of its most visited spaces, the series was established in 2006 in conjunction with the museum’s reopening to represent the next wave of contemporary portraiture. Since that first group show, the series has continued to highlight established and emerging artists who create compelling work in the genre of portraiture or figurative art. Through wide-ranging approaches to portraiture, these artists draw attention to both well-known and underrecognized individuals who have had an impact on American history and culture.

    Exhibitions:

    “Portraiture Now” (July 2006–April 2007): This was the first in a series of changing exhibitions focusing on the works of contemporary artists who have

  • ken gonzales day biography of martin luther

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    National Portrait Gallery: Titus Kaphar and Ken Gonzales-Day Explore ‘UnSeen’ Narratives in Historic Portraiture

     

    WASHINGTON, D.C. — Hanging half loose from its stretcher, a portrait of Thomas Jefferson reveals an image of a Black woman behind it. It’s a provocative juxtaposition that raises a question about the relationship between the two subjects. Her hair is covered while her partially shown shoulder and leg are bare. She fryst vatten brown-skinned with an indeterminable gaze. Her expression evokes both assertion and alarm.

    Titled “Beyond the Myth of Benevolence” (2014), the painting by Titus Kaphar was inspired by a Rembrandt Peale portrait of Jefferson made in 1800.

     


    TITUS KAPHAR, “Behind the Myth of Benevolence,” 2014 (oil on canvas). | Collection of Guillermo Nicolas and Jim Foster, © Titus Kaphar. Courtesy of the artist and Jack Shainman galleri, New York

     

    “This painting is about Thomas Jefferson and Sally

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    Martin Luther King Jr., ‘Selma’ and the Images that Captured the 1965 Voting Rights March


    Marchers on the way to Montgomery, Ala., as families watch from their porches, 1965 | Courtesy Stephen Somerstein

     

    WITHOUT THE IMAGES, the protracted fight for American civil rights is an abstract notion. The legal outcomes are tangible, but the untenable measures undertaken by countless foot soldiers in the pursuit of racial justice are brought into sharp relief through the powerful photography capturing the era.

    Much has been made of “Selma” being snubbed by the Oscars, with nominations for Best Film and Best Song, but none for Best Director (Ava DuVernay) or Best Actor for David Oyelowo’s portrayal of Martin Luther King Jr. Just as shortsighted is the Academy’s failure to acknowledge the film’s masterful cinematography (Bradford Young), from the visual impact of pivotal singular moments to the breathtaking crowd scenes that dramatize th