Kehinde Wiley: Juxtaposition beats Aestheticsim

I truly love Kehinde Wiley. He has an amazing talent and his social commentary is different. Kehinde Wiley's art makes me laugh. It is poignant and the juxtaposition is wonderful. When one sees the men Wiley paints in the real world, one never imagines them riding ponies, or being showered with flowers while laying on a couch.




In general, the men Wiley chooses to paint are not necessarily viewed as terribly well off, and in the past when French Baroque and Rococo where common in paintings, the people who requisitioned them were rich. Having a portrait of oneself or one's family was a general sign of wealth. These young, urban men do not connote the idea of wealth. Wiley is trying to beak barriers of racism and class by creating such juxtapositions.
He also is mocking the idea the men should be masculine by putting extremely tough looking guys on litters on ponies, and lying on couches. It shows Wiley's sense of humor.