What is portraiture? It's choice. It's the ability to position your body in the world for the world to celebrate you on your own terms.
-Kehinde Wiley
The two limited edition prints are a culmination of the collaboration between The Lapis Press and Kehinde Wiley. Sophie Arnould Study II and Tomb of Pope Alexander VII Study I take inspiration from Wiley’s oil on paper paintings to create a new dimension in his work for the two editions of 30 pigmented ink prints. Each work is enhanced by the artist’s hand application of silver ink, adding an intricate delicacy and resonance to the portrait’s details. These two new editions are a continuation of the relationship that Lapis and the artist began in 2014, affording our studio an inspired understanding of Wiley’s practice to produce Sophie Arnould Study II and Tomb of Pope Alexander VII Study I.
Like a religious icon or tabernacle, these smaller, contemplative versions of his grand portraits are presented in a simple dark walnut frame, giving the work an intimate quality.