Installation view of “beginning & the end neither & the otherwise betwixt & between the end is the beginning & the end” (2016) by Raúl De Nieves. Whitney Biennial 2017, Whitney Museum of American Art, New York, March 13-June 11, 2017. Collection of the artist; courtesy Company Gallery, New York. Photograph by Matthew Carasella
The Whitney Biennial is the first major art event to occur in the wake of a tumultuous last few months. As such, it was no surprise that the themes explored would encompass the formation of self and the individual’s place in a turbulent society. Upon the press opening, the New York institution’s director hinted that irony was off the cards but that didn’t give away the wide breadth of critical, joyous and eclectic art on offer.
Curators Christopher Y. Lew and Mia Locks selected 63 artists to fill two floors of the museum with art that states they’re neither apathetic nor indifferent – and definitely not cynical. Some of the most potent works included Henry Taylor’s painting of the moment when Philando Castile was shot by the police live on Facebook. The harrowing image, however, gives a cry for hope with the title “THE TIMES THAY AINT A CHANGING, FAST ENOUGH!” exhibiting a sense of urgency that is hard to ignore. Elsewhere, the variety in mediums and approaches is impressive, with artworks in the form of interventions like Cameron Rowland’s “Public Money” (2017), whereby the artist had the Whitney buy shares of a project that will lead to a reduction in the rate of adult incarcerations. Elsewhere, artists such as Tala Madani keep it serious yet witty with a series of paintings featuring light-emanating bottoms, and non-US artists such as Anicka Yi provide an international narrative at a biennial that deconstructs post-colonialism.
Scroll through the image gallery below for a selection of works from the 2017 Whitney Biennial
“Lyle, London, 1992” (2015) by Lyle Ashton Harris. Collection of the artist; courtesy the artist
Installation view of “Figure Ground: Beyond the White Field” (2017) by Rafa Esparza. Whitney Biennial 2017, Whitney Museum of American Art, New York, March 13-June 11, 2017. Photograph by Matthew Carasella
Installation view of “Pacific Red II” (2017) by Larry Bell. Whitney Biennial 2017, Whitney Museum of American Art, New York, March 13-June 11, 2017. Collection of the artist; courtesy Hauser Wirth & Schimmel, Los Angeles. Photograph by Matthew Carasella
“Stress, Fear and Anxiety Bundle” (2015) by Occupy Museums. Artworks by artists whose collective debt totals $732,462.24 and who use the words “stress,” “fear,” or “anxiety” when discussing how their economic realities make them feel (left to right: Amy Beth Wright, Katherine Culbertson, Marc Newsome, anonymous, Lucas Berd, Claire Webb, Ben Tecumseh De Soto, Greg Scott, Bereniz Martinez, and Lara Anne). Installation view: Debtfair, Art League Houston, Houston, TX, November 20, 2015-January 10, 2016. Courtesy the artists
Still from “The Lesser Key of Solomon” (2015) by Tommy Hartung. Ultra-high-definition video, color, sound; 8:05 min. Courtesy the artist and On Stellar Rays, New York
“Crust Bucket Comes to Town (Slipper Chair)” (2016) by Jessi Reaves. Courtesy the artist and Bridget Donahue, New York
“Glimmer Glass” (2016) by Carrie Moyer. Collection of the artist; courtesy DC Moore Gallery, New York
“Swiss Bramble” (2016) by Carrie Moyer. Collection of the artist; courtesy the artist and DC Moore Gallery, New York
Documentation of “Salón-Sala-Salón (Labra)” by Chemi Rosado-Seijo. Escuela Rafael María de Labra, San Juan, PR, August–December 2014. Courtesy the artist