Portrait Of Hank Willis Thomas, La Romeria De San Isidro 2017

Kehinde Wiley made this painting of Hank Willis Thomas, and I am just fascinated. I mean, look at the palette! Those deep blues and blacks against the skin tones, with that dramatic sky emerging from the darkness. It's almost theatrical, right? You can imagine Wiley in the studio, layering those colors, mixing tradition with a modern sensibility, making something completely new. I think about what it must have been like to create this painting. What was Wiley thinking as he transformed the traditional portrait? The way Hank Willis Thomas is positioned, it's got this regal air, but there's also something intimate about the gaze. It makes you wonder about the dialogue between the two artists. Like, how much back and forth was there about the pose? It's all connected, right? Painting, like life, is an ongoing conversation, where we're all borrowing, stealing, and transforming ideas.