Kehinde Wiley: An Economy of Grace
Black Lives • 39m
Directed by Jeff Dupre • Documentary • With Kehinde Wiley • 2014 • 40 minutes
The artist behind Barack Obama’s presidential portrait, Kehinde Wiley is known for his vibrant, larger-than-life reinterpretations of classical portraits featuring young Black men. “Kehinde Wiley: An Economy of Grace” follows the artist as he embarks upon an exciting new project – a series of classical portraits of Black women. Embracing serendipity and chance, Kehinde casts his models on the bustling streets of New York – highlighting Chanel, a prison guard at Riker’s Island; Shantavia, a teen mother working for her GED; Cali and Dacia, young lovers in the throws of a new romance; Treisha, an immigrant from Barbados with attitude to spare; and Ena, a nurse who hopes to one day open an art gallery of her own. Finding models is just the beginning of Wiley’s elaborate process. The artist collaborates with Givenchy’s Riccardo Tisci to design gowns for his subjects to pose in, paints in his studio in Beijing and finally unveils his works at the Sean Kelly Gallery in New York for all to see. “An Economy of Grace” is an exploration of Black beauty and an intimate portrait of one of this generation’s most intriguing and accomplished visionaries.
Up Next in Black Lives
-
We Are The Radical Monarchs
Directed by Linda Goldstein Knowlton • Documentary • 2018 • 86 minutes
Set in Oakland, a city with a deep history of social justice movements, WE ARE THE RADICAL MONARCHS documents the Radical Monarchs - an alternative to the Scout movement for girls of color, aged 8-13. Its members earn badges ...
-
Frame Up!
Directed by Steven Fischler, Joel Sucher and Howard Blatt • Documentary • 1974 • 30 minutes
Examining the case of Martin Sostre, a black Puerto Rican bookstore owner in Buffalo, New York who was framed on drug possession charges in 1967 and sentenced to prison, this film shows how the American j...
-
64 Day Hero: A Boxer's Tale
Directed by Franco Rosso • Documentary • 1985 • 92 minutes
In this compelling and thought-provoking documentary, sports writer and novelist Gordon Williams uses archive footage, as well as interviews with family members and friends, to investigate the troubled life of the mixed-race British boxi...
