A monumental survey of Kerry James Marshall’s visionary paintings, placing Black life at the very heart of Western art. It arrives at the Royal Academy this autumn.
This autumn, the Royal Academy presents a landmark survey of Kerry James Marshall, among the most compelling painters working today. Marshall’s vivid, often large‑scale canvases place Black lives at the centre of picture‑making, engaging the very traditions that once left them out.
Drawing on history painting, comic books, civil‑rights photography and hints of science fiction, his works braid memory, critique and celebration into a language that feels both classical and urgent. Expect more than seventy works, including Knowledge and Wonder (1995), a monumental library commission rarely seen beyond Chicago, offering a sweeping meditation on who is pictured, how and why.
For those who cherish ambitious painting, cultural memory and the re‑writing of art history, this is essential viewing.
