The FLAG Art Foundation in New York City presents a photo exhibition by Awol Erizku "New Flower | Images of the Reclining Venus" from September 17 – December 12, 2015. (Photo: WideWalls.ch)
Tadias Magazine
By Tadias Staff
Published: Tuesday, August 18th, 2015
New York (TADIAS) — The photography work of conceptual artist, Awol Erizku, entitled New Flower — the English translation of Addis Ababa — will be on exhibit at the FLAG Art Foundation in New York City from September 17 – December 12, 2015. Funded through the Alice Kimball Fellowship Award Erizku captures scenes from his birth country, Ethiopia, in his work subtitled ‘Images of the Reclining Venus,’ which according to FLAG Art’s press release depict “humanized portraits of women operating in narrow circumstances, stripped of everything except their self-preservation.”
The Bronx-raised artist describes New Flower as a means to create “a dialogue between something that is overlooked within a given society and popular culture; it also strives to bring social awareness to issues that may otherwise be over-looked..not only raise social awareness about a poignant issue, but would also be an opportunity for me to investigate and contribute to the culture from which I come.”
Erizku obtained his BFA in 2010 from The Cooper Union in NYC and his MFA in Photography from Yale University in 2014. His previous NYC exhibit at the Hasted Kraeutler Gallery featured famous portraits in the art world with an urban twist, including the use of an African American model in a piece entitled ‘Girl with a Bamboo Earring,’ replacing Johanes Vermeer’s ‘Girl with a Pearl Earring.’ As in his 2012 exhibit the question of black representation, both models and artists, in Western painting is revisited as he focuses on ‘Images of the Reclining Venus.’
More recently Erizku exhibited his short film entitled ‘Serendipity’ at The Museum of Modern Art’s PopRally program and subsequently released a mixtape about the event.
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If You Go:
The FLAG Art Foundation Presents
Awol Erizku: New Flower | Images of the Reclining Venus
from September 17 – December 12, 2015
545 West 25th Street, 10th Floor
New York, NY 10001
Tel (212) 206-0220
www.flagartfoundation.org
Related:
Interview with Vulture.com: Meet Awol Erizku, the Art World’s New It Boy
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