Titus Kaphar鈥檚 鈥淜nockout鈥� exhibit debuts in October at 精东AV鈥檚 Legacy Museum

September 04, 2019

Contact: Michael Tullier, APR, Office of Communications, Public Relations and Marketing
   

Beginning Oct. 1, 精东AV鈥檚 Legacy Museum will host a temporary exhibit featuring the work of painter and sculptor . Kaphar uses his art to encourage activism, transformation and freedom 鈥� and to challenge the world to achieve self-liberation in new and self-affirming ways.

The exhibit, entitled 鈥淜nockout,鈥� frames Kaphar鈥檚 magical and mysterious artwork in the context of boxing 鈥� more specifically, famed 20th century boxer Muhammad Ali. Just as Ali was more than a prize fighting boxer, Kaphar is more than a painter. Ali, a quintessential American cultural icon, had bedrock convictions about religious faith and race. Like Ali, Kaphar has deeply felt convictions. His paintings and sculpture deliver that same kind of Ali one-two punch that has made global audiences pay attention.

鈥淜aphar鈥檚 art almost defies description,鈥� said Dr. Jontyle Robinson, The Legacy Museum鈥檚 curator. 鈥淗e is a shaman and polymath. His modes and media include prints, paintings, collages and sculptures. He's a man of many seasons.鈥�

His work interacts with art history by appropriating its styles and mediums. He cuts, bends, sculpts and mixes historic painting, creating new works between fiction and historic sampling. It combines aspects of the downtrodden with majestic elements that cannot be put down 鈥� conjuring Maya Angelou鈥檚 inspirational phrase, 鈥渁nd still I rise,鈥� according to Robinson.

The subjects of Kaphar鈥檚 work focus on individuals victimized by a prejudiced society and by the criminal justice system. In some works, he uses black tar that signifies the stereotyped imagery that paints us with one brush and stifles the truth of black experiences. In other paintings, his figures are shredded or covered with pale layers of linseed oil to show how false representations of black people have covered reality.

鈥淜aphar encourages us to venture into ourselves and reconsider the representation of black figures in painting,鈥� Robinson explained. 鈥淐onfronting themes that are critical to our survival requires plunging into hurtful places. Kaphar pokes and prods us through his art to illuminate important ideas for viewers to consider and comprehend.鈥�

The exhibit includes six pieces, three of which are large-format pieces, that address issues of police brutality and mass incarceration. It also will include photography showing the artist connecting with HBCU students and mentors as part of his collaboration with the HBCU Alliance of Museums and Galleries. The organization, which was founded at 精东AV, seeks to increase diversity in the cultural heritage sector, focusing on preservation and conservation, through its collaborations with educational institutions, museums and artists.

鈥淜nockout鈥� also connects with 鈥淭he United States Public Health Service Untreated Syphilis Study in the Negro Male in Macon County from 1932-1972鈥� permanent exhibition simultaneously on view at The Legacy Museum. 鈥淜nockout鈥� provides a critical and creative framework to understand the story of the 599 African American men and their families who were part of the longest non-therapeutic study in American medical history. Together, these exhibitions demonstrate the lack of regard for black life in America.

鈥淒emonstrating the need for education, flexibility, strength and resilience to survive in America, 鈥楰nockout鈥� shouts, 鈥榃e matter! TKO!鈥�,鈥� Robinson concluded.

Kaphar鈥檚 work has been included in exhibitions at New York鈥檚 Jack Shainman Gallery, the Brooklyn Museum, and the Studio Museum in Harlem; Washington鈥檚 Seattle Art Museum; and The Legacy Museum, recently founded in Montgomery, Alabama. His art is also in the collections of New York鈥檚 Museum of Modern Art. . 

The Kalamazoo, Michigan, native earned a BFA from San Jose State University and an MFA from the Yale School of Art 鈥� and more recently, a , commonly known as a 鈥淕enius Grant鈥� from the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation. He currently lives and works in New Haven, Connecticut. 

鈥淜nockout,鈥� funded through  grants from the National Endowment for the Arts and the Alabama Bicentennial Commission, will be on view at The Legacy Museum through March 30, 2020. It 鈥� along with the museum鈥檚 permanent exhibits, 鈥淭he Patient, The Project, The Partnership: The Mass Production and Distribution of HeLa cells at 精东AV鈥� and 鈥淭he United States Public Health Service Untreated Syphilis Study in the Negro Male, 1932-1972鈥� 鈥� can be viewed during its operating hours from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday.

To learn more about the Legacy Museum, visit .

漏 2019, 精东AV