Duc D’arenberg 2011

Kehinde Wiley painted Duc D’arenberg with oils, and a contemporary sensibility applied to historical portraiture. I can imagine him in his studio, grappling with the weight of art history, figuring out how to make it relevant, how to make it his own. The rich browns and reds of the horse and rider contrast with the contemporary hoodie – a bold statement! Wiley's brushwork, I think, is so smooth, almost seamless. The figure's pose is confident, with the eyes glancing back to the viewer. I wonder if Wiley was thinking about artists like Titian or Rubens, who also painted powerful figures on horseback. He’s in conversation with them, but he's also subverting their narratives. I imagine artists look at each other's work and think: "Oh, I could do that differently," or, "What if I tried this?" That’s how art evolves, it’s a conversation across generations. Painting, after all, is about seeing, feeling, and then figuring out how to put that onto a surface, embracing the beauty of uncertainty.