Chris Ofili: Night and Day at the New Museum

“Blossom”

So the biggest caveat of writing about the Chris Ofili exhibition: Night and Day at the New Museum (albeit somewhat delayed) is that I was unable to capture the best pieces in the show (the pieces in the “Night” section) because, as you could imagine, it was dark as hell in there. Words never do artwork justice–but the third floor which was dedicated to a body of work inspired by the “Blue Devils”–a Trinidadian reference from Carnival that also represents a political reference to police and their relationship with black men. The exhibition as a whole was moving and Ofili (recipient of the Tuner prize and embroiled in controversy when former major Giuliani chastised his “The Holy Virgin Mary” painting in 1999) lives up to his reputation as the contemporary Gauguin. Ofili is notorious for using elephant dung in his work. His paintings are vibrant, sensual, emotional, and thought-provoking.

“Ovid-Actaeon”

“Shithead”

“Afromuses”