For this discussion, the idea is to consider the ways in which Neoclassical pain

For this discussion, the idea is to consider the ways in which Neoclassical paintings and their general aesthetic or style may be considered, addressed or reconfigured in the present.
In a specific case, we will look at the work of the Brooklyn based artist Kehinde Wiley (b. 1977) in relation to the work of the French painter Jacques-Louis David (1748-1825).
We have recently looked at works of David, particularly his depiction of the Death of Socrates (1787). We have considered compositional as well as political and symbolic messages and ideals that that work might attempt to convey. So, what relation might we make with these elements of David’s today? How might David be reconsidered in relation to the work of Kehinde Wiley, or other contemporary artists?
Assignment: Please review the material below and then afterwards please add your thoughts to this discussion on the work/s of David and the work/s of Wiley.
What would you say is the message or style of David, and what is the message and style of Wiley?
How does Wiley work with the style of Neoclassicism and how does he make it his own?
What is the narrative that Wiley is interested in depicting? What about specific values or virtues?
Expand your thoughts upon David, Wiley, the Neoclassical and the contemporary in this thread (aim for at least two paragraphs), add images, notes or sketches if you like to add specificity to your thoughts.
In 2020 the Brooklyn Museum held an exhibition of work by both David and Wiley, titled: Jacques-Louis David Meets Kehinde Wiley
In that exhibition the Brooklyn Museum placed two works on view:
Jacques-Louis David’s painting, Bonaparte Crossing the Alps, 1800-01:
-and-
Kehinde Wiley’s Napolean Leading the Army over the Alps, 2005:
You can consider these two works, and the related exhibition, via the Brooklyn Museum website: https://www.brooklynmuseum.org/exhibitions/david_wiley (Links to an external site.)
After you have read the exhibition description and viewed the two paintings, visit Wiley’s personal website and read through the FAQ section: https://kehindewiley.com/ (Links to an external site.)
Here is an excerpt from Wiley’s statement relating to his inspiration, from the above linked site:
What typically inspires a painting?
Classical European paintings of noblemen, royalty and aristocrats. My goal was to be able to paint illusionistically and master the technical aspects, but then to be able to fertilize that with great ideas. I was trained to paint the body by copying the Old Master paintings, so in some weird way this is a return to how I earned my chops — spending a lot of time at museums and staring at white flesh. If you look at my paintings, there’s something about lips, eyes, and mucous membranes. Is it only about that? No. It asks, “What are these guys doing?’ They’re assuming the poses of colonial masters, the former bosses of the Old World. Whenever I do photo shoots for paintings, I pull out a stack of books, whether it be something from the High Renaissance or the late French Rococo or the 19th century, it’s all thrown together in one big jumble. I take the figure out of its original environment and place it in something completely made up. Most of the backgrounds I end up using are sheer decorative devices. Things that come from things like wallpaper or the architectural façade ornamentation of a building, and in a way it robs the painting of any sense of place or location, and it’s located strictly in an area of the decorative. For the backgrounds in the World Stage Series, I look for traditional decorative objects, textiles, or devotional objects of that culture to draw upon.
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