2017 Catalogue Archive

While Los Angeles native Henry Taylor attempted to take part in political groups in his youth, he now expresses his activism in portraits of African-Americans who are his neighbors, friends, or historical figures illustrated in a signature color-blocked style. Taylor paints his subjects with a raw energy, visible in this work of a woman with giant expressive eyes but no mouth to speak. The inclusion of the painters tape has been an element of his work for years, where objects he finds on the streets or in his studio make their way to the canvas. An entire room of Taylor’s paintings, including his much-discussed depiction of Philando Castile’s last moments titled THE TIMES THAY AIN’T A CHANGING, FAST ENOUGH!!!, was one of the focal points of the most recent Whitney Biennial, and his painting of Michelle Obama on the White House lawn was the cover of the March issue of Art in America.