Tag: hank willis thomas

Hank Willis Thomas at Jack Shainman Gallery

Race is “at the nexus of so many social currents and tensions,” wrote a Daily Beast reporter while engaging a 2015 exhibition by Hank Willis Thomas.  Yet Thomas’ polished stainless steel sculpture Nexus (in the foreground of this photo), now on view in his solo show at Jack Shainman Gallery, models colorblind mutual aid in the form of two individuals grasping hands.  Elsewhere, a bronze sculpture of two clasped hands in different colored patinas titled ‘Loving,’ celebrates a mixed-race marriage while the show’s largest piece, ‘Embrace’ depicts Martin Luther King Jr. and Coretta Scott King’s arms enfolding each other.  A neon piece spelling out Thomas’ oft repeated phrase (honoring his murdered cousin’s last words) ‘Love Over Rules’ reinforces the artist’s message.  (On view in Chelsea through Oct 29th).

Hank Willis Thomas, Nexus (in detail in the foreground), polished stainless steel, 96 inches tall, 2022.

Hank Willis Thomas at Jack Shainman Gallery

Inspired by Louis Lozowick’s 1935 ‘Strike Scene’ lithograph, Hank Willis Thomas’s stainless steel ‘Strike’ is a powerful symbol of resistance.  A highlight of the artist’s latest two-gallery solo show at Jack Shainman Gallery, the sculpture presents a fragment of a scenario that speaks to a broader history of struggle. (On view in Chelsea through May 12th).

Hank Willis Thomas, Strike, stainless steel with mirrored finish, approx. 33 x 33 x 9 inches, 2018.

Hank Willis Thomas at Jack Shainman Gallery

Hank Willis Thomas is banking on Hillary Clinton getting the Democratic nod for president; so much that he was inspired to open up a conversation about the role of women in an update on his famous ‘Unbranded’ series, for which he removed logos and text from ad images to reflect on the naked images used by corporate America to move products. Now he’s selected one hundred images of white women from the past one hundred years. The show at Jack Shainman’s two Chelsea locations is even getting a boost with advertising of its own at the 8th Ave and 23rd Street subway station. (Through May 23rd).

Ad for Hank Willis Thomas’ show ‘Unbranded: A Century of White Women, 1915 – 2015.

Hank Willis Thomas at Jack Shainman Gallery

Viewers have to look at just the right angle down a long, thick piece of Plexiglas to spy Hank Willis Thomas’ minstrel, a photo of a man painted half black and half white, then literally doubled by the material.  Like similar characters photographed by the artist, a seemingly clear cover obstructs a clear view, a metaphor for how perceptions of race can obscure identity.  (At Jack Shainman Gallery’s 24th Street space through Aug 17th).  

Hank Willis Thomas, ‘Invisible Man,’ Plexi block and a digital c-print on aluminum, 2013.