The Whole World Smiles With You
29 May - 26 June 2024

Alayo curated this exhibition which was both a product of and in response to the recent wave of popularity for figuration by Black artists in the commercial art market. A panel discussion on this subject was recorded for A Shared Gaze podcast, and can be accessed here.

The Whole World Smiles With You interrogated various modes of figuration by Black contemporary artists. The exhibited artists challenge the Western canon by overtly reconfiguring renowned paintings to include Black protagonists or, more covertly, portraying figures in poses reminiscent of pre-twentieth-century European portraiture. Certain works in the exhibition also demonstrated a tendency among the artists to distort, simplify, or caricature the image of a Black person – either to draw attention to negative stereotypes or to imagine them extending beyond imposed limitations.

Photo credit: Eva Herzog