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dankusner · 4 months

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Joseph Awuah-Darko Accuses Kehinde Wiley of Sexual Assault

Joseph Awuah-Darko, a prominent figure on the Ghanaian art scene, has accused world-renowned artist Kehinde Wiley of sexual assault.

Awuah-Darko said that Wiley assaulted him twice at a June 9, 2021 dinner held in the artist’s honor at the Creative Art Council at the Noldor Artist Residency, which Awuah-Darko founded in 2020. Wiley has denied the allegations.

Awuah-Darko’s May 19 post said that the first assault consisted of Wiley groping his buttocks while he was escorting Wiley and another guest up a flight of stairs to the bathroom.

This contact was, he said, “categorically unwelcome and unprovoked.”

He said it was witnessed by another dinner guest, who is not named; Awuah-Darko did not immediately respond to an emailed inquiry about the identity of this person.

“The second assault,” Awuah-Darko said, “was much more severe and violent.”

He did not go into specifics.

Wiley responded in an Instagram post, saying: “Someone I had a brief, consensual relationship with almost three years ago is now making a false accusation about our time together. These claims are not true and are an affront to all victims of sexual abuse. I have no idea why he has decided to target me in this way—particularly when there is a litany of evidence showing his claims are false—but I hope he gets the help he needs for whatever he is going through. I kindly ask for privacy as I work to clear my name.”

In a longer statement supplied to Artnet News via his press representative, Marathon Strategies, Wiley added that Awuah-Darko “has been trying to be part of my life ever since we met, flying to Nigeria to attend my birthday party, attempting to visit my home in upstate in New York, sending me warm and cordial text messages, and almost a year ago to the day attending my exhibition at the de Young Museum in San Francisco and posting to Instagram that the show by his ‘dear friend’ was ‘breathtaking.’”

The PR firm provided screenshots of several text messages between Awuah-Darko and Wiley dating from between the time of the alleged assault and Awuah-Darko’s Instagram posts, including the since-deleted May 27, 2023 post in which Awuah-Darko refers to Wiley as “my dear friend.”

Awuah-Darko, who is a collector, artist, musician, writer, curator and entrepreneur, was born in London to a family of Ghanaian financiers and lives in Accra.

He appeared on Forbes Africa’s “30 Under 30” list in 2019, where he was celebrated both as an artist and the managing director of the African Modern Art Fund.

The Noldor Residency supports African and diaspora artists.

He collects Ghanaian art stars such as Serge Attukwei Clottey and Gideon Appah.

On March 23, Awuah-Darko posted an Instagram video in which he said he had been assaulted but did not name Wiley.

In his post from Sunday, he said that it took him several months to “reconcile” with what had happened and said that given Wiley’s stature as a gay man, “formally reporting this assault in a West African country like Ghana (where anti-LGBTQIA+ sentiments are prevalent) would have been problematic at best—dangerous at worst.”

He also said that there are other victims of abuse at Wiley’s hands in New York (where the artist is based), Beijing (where he has a studio), Nigeria, and elsewhere; he added that other art world professionals “have quietly expressed witnessing this pattern of predatory behaviour [and] that this behaviour by Kehinde has been treated as an open secret within the art world for quite some time.”

Awuah-Darko did not immediately respond to an emailed request to expand on any of these claims.

No criminal charges have been filed against Wiley, according to a report in the New York Times, which also noted that Wiley’s lawyers sent Awuah-Darko a cease and desist letter demanding that the Ghanaian artist delete his Instagram posts and refrain from making what it said were false statements against Wiley. Awuah-Darko told the Times that he had not seen the letter.

“I thoroughly invite you to leverage your supposed credibility, your influence, your loyalists, and everything you have to gag those of us who come forward,” Awuah-Darko concluded in his Instagram post. “Because I assure you, you will need it.”

Since his first show with Sean Kelly in 2012, Wiley has rocketed to international stardom.

He received a U.S. State Department Medal of Honor in 2015 and ascended to even higher rungs of fame when he was commissioned to paint a portrait of President Barack Obama, which was unveiled in 2018.

In 2019, he made another splash when he founded Black Rock Senegal, a residency program in that country’s capital city, Dakar.

Museums Cancel or Delay Kehinde Wiley Shows in Wake of Allegations

The Joslyn Museum of Art in Omaha, Nebraska, the Minneapolis Institute of Art (Mia), and the Pérez Art Museum Miami (PAMM) have shelved or postponed exhibitions by Kehinde Wiley.

These actions come in the wake of accusations of sexual assault against the artist.

The first was leveled by the artist-curator Joseph Awuah-Darko, on Instagram last month.

Since then, two others, activist Derrick Ingram and Nathaniel Lloyd Richards, have made claims of rape or groping, which Wiley has dismissed as “baseless.”

The Minneapolis show, an iteration of the survey “An Archaeology of Silence,” which debuted at the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco and later traveled to the Museum of Fine Art, Houston, has been canceled.

“Mia was considering taking the Kehinde Wiley exhibition, but as a result of these unfortunate allegations we will not be proceeding with this presentation,” the institution said in a statement to ARTnews today.

“An Archaeology of Silence” was scheduled to travel to the PAMM from July 2024 to January 2025, but a museum spokesperson said it has “suspended plans” to host the show.

The Flatwater Free Press, meanwhile, reported yesterday that the exhibition “Kehinde Wiley: Omaha” will not open on September 10 as scheduled, when the Joslyn Museum reopens after a more than two-year renovation.

“We are revisiting our exhibition schedule,” Amy Rummel, director of marketing and public relations, told the paper.

“The Joslyn will announce any updates at a later date.” The museum declined to answer questions about whether the delay was related to the assault allegations.

The exhibition was to focus on South Sudanese immigrants residing in Omaha.

While already widely known in the art world for portraits of young Black men in poses and settings that echoed those of the Old Masters, Wiley broke out onto a new level of global fame in 2018, when he was tapped by Democratic President Barack Obama to paint his portrait.

Wiley’s attorney did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the museums’ actions or on the accusations themselves, but Jennifer J. Barrett, of New York firm Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan, previously told ARTnews: “Posting something to Instagram doesn’t make it true. Yet, in today’s world, anyone can spread blatant lies with a single post, and the public accepts it at face value.”

Anti-Censorship Coalition Criticizes Cancellation of Kehinde Wiley Shows

The National Coalition Against Censorship, an alliance of nonprofit groups supporting free speech and civil liberties, has criticized the cancellation and postponement of Kehinde Wiley shows in the wake of sexual misconduct allegations.

Wiley, best known for his portrait of U.S. President Barack Obama, has denied allegations of sexual assault made last month by Ghanian art figure Joseph Awuah-Darko and two other men that later came forward.

Still, in the wake of the allegations, the Joslyn Museum of Art in Omaha, Nebraska, the Minneapolis Institute of Art, and the Pérez Art Museum Miami have shelved or postponed exhibitions of his work.

While the NCAC agreed that the allegations against Wiley are “serious and concerning,” the coalition argued that museums are not equipped to be moral arbiters.

“His stature as an artist would in no way excuse any such alleged behaviors or lessen their impacts,” NCAC said. “But the response of cultural institutions—to immediately rescind plans to exhibit the artist’s works—does a disservice to the audiences who wish to experience the work of one of the nation’s most well-recognized artists.”

The coalition said the response by the three museums implied a practice of scrutinizing the personal conduct of all artists they exhibit, saying that institutions are “not equipped or mandated to be enforcers of moral orthodoxy.”

Instead, the coalition suggested that museums should contextualize artworks that have artistic merit rather than canceling the artists.

Doing so, it said, would reduce the “complexity and quantity of art eligible for exhibition.”

As examples, it pointed to noted artists with “moral flaws,” such as Caravaggio, who was convicted for murder, and Picasso, who was known to be abusive to his lovers.

“Museums are, or at least should be, equipped to host exhibitions that probe the complexity of given artworks at the time in which they are presented, and host important discussions about ethical conflicts, should the need for them arise,” the coalition added.

The group called on the leadership behind the Joslyn, Pérez, and Minneapolis museums to go ahead with their respective Kehinde Wiley exhibitions, while acknowledging the allegations against the artist.

It further urged all museums to adopt “clear free speech guidelines” for future exhibitions.

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marielle-eva-art · 1 year

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ARTIST RESEARCH

Reflective research:

Artists in response to water and critical themes of ecology, environmentalism, feminism, social-psychology, culture, identity, spiritualism, and philosophical concepts...

Serge Attukwei Clottey:

I was deeply moved by the work 'Tomorrow's World' by Serge Attukwei Clottey, which uses yellow plastic jerrycans to create a striking installation reflecting Ghana's water crisis. He transforms the discarded containers used to transport water from distant sources into a powerful symbol of resilience, creativity, and hope. Serge Attukwei Clottey invites the viewers to re-think how we use and value water and how we can address the environmental and social issues that affect its availability and quality. This work inspires me because it shows how art can raise awareness and spark dialogue about the importance of water for life and well-being. It also demonstrates how art can connect us to the lived experiences of people facing water scarcity and insecurity daily.

How can I challenge my practice more strikingly provocatively to stimulate the audience's attention to the value of water and the environmental crisis? The risk of losing our most vital source of life, water, and to imagine a better tomorrow where water is accessible, safe, and sustainable for all.

Yeni & Nan:

Yeni & Nan is a duo of artists who explore the connection between water and human existence through various creative practices.

Their art inspires me because they translate their ideas into beautiful and meaningful forms, such as installations, performances, sculptures, and videos. I like how they use water as a metaphor for life, change, flow, and transformation. Their art practice is bold, innovative, and original, combining different media and techniques to create immersive and engaging experiences.

Their art also challenges me to consider the environmental and social issues related to water, such as scarcity, pollution, access, and justice, and how to translate that through the body, environment, and performative practices. I'd like to aim to develop my voice and vision in water and human existence through creative practices such as Yani and Nan.

Maria Whiteman:

I came across Maria Whiteman recently after a lengthy dig for artists who work with water. Her use of water as a visual language inspires me as her approach is more poetic. She explores the connections between water, land, and human bodies in various media, such as photography, video, and installation. Her works evoke a sense of wonder, vulnerability, and intimacy with the natural world, which closely relates to the direction my art practice is going.

I admire how she challenges the conventional representations of water and invites the viewers to reflect on their own relationship with this vital element. Her practice resonates with me personally, as I have always been fascinated by water and its symbolic meanings. Water is a source of life but also a force of destruction. It is fluid but also solid. It is transparent but also reflective. It is both familiar and mysterious. By using water as a visual language, Maria Whiteman creates works rich in meaning and emotion, which I admire.

Sandra Selig:

The more I explore Sandra Selig's works, the more I'm interested in how she converts such transient concepts and elements into a visual experience, especially in her installation Rivers Recording the Universe (Tokyo) 2009. In this piece, she uses water as a medium to create a dynamic and immersive environment that reflects the cosmic patterns of the universe. She invites the viewers to experience the fluidity and interconnectedness of life through the movement and sound of water.

Her use of water as a visual language is very inspiring, as it shows how something so familiar and essential can also be a source of beauty and wonder. Water is a material for her and a metaphor for the cycles and transformations occurring in nature and ourselves. She reveals both elements' hidden dimensions and potentials by exploring the relationship between water and light. Her work challenges me to look at water in a new way, not as something passive and mundane but as something active and mysterious, capable of expressing and recording the universe.

Dylan Miner:

Dylan Miner is a remarkable artist who fascinates me with his lyrical and political approach to creative practices. He employs cyanotype printing, a photographic technique that I am currently exploring, to create works exploring Indigenous peoples' past and future, especially the Métis Nation. His cyanotypes are aesthetically pleasing and robust statements that challenge colonial narratives and celebrate Indigenous resistance and resurgence. I respect his ability to combine art and activism and to use his medium as a tool for education and empowerment. Dylan Miner encourages me to use my creativity to express my identity, values, relationship to place, and vision for a more equitable and sustainable world.

Song Dong:

Song Dong's art practice intrigues me a lot, especially his stamping the water and water diary projects. These works explore the ephemeral nature of water and its spiritual significance in Chinese culture.

I admire how he uses water as a medium to create personal and universal art, reflecting his own experiences and emotions and his people's collective memory and history. His works inspire me to think about the relationship I have between water and life and how water can be a source of meditation and healing. I incorporate some of his techniques and concepts in my art practice, such as meditation while interacting with natural water sources.

I want to create art that is not only visually appealing but also meaningful and transformative for myself and the viewers.

Sophie Dieu:

I admire Sophie Dieu's art practice because she explores the themes of identity, belonging and healing through her expressive portraits. She uses ink, water, and salt to create fluid and organic shapes that reflect her emotions and experiences. Much like 'Betsy Damon,' she also collaborates with other artists and communities to create inclusive and empowering spaces for creativity and dialogue. Her art is inspiring because it shows the beauty and diversity of human stories and the power of art to heal and connect.

Hannah Rowan:

Another artist who explores water is long-based artist Hannah Rowan. Her water research explores the physical, emotional, and cultural aspects of water and how it shapes our lives and environments. Her artworks are beautiful and immersive, inviting the viewers to reflect on their own relationship with water. I admire her interdisciplinary approach, combining scientific knowledge, artistic expression, and environmental awareness. She challenges me to think more deeply and creatively about water as a vital resource using a scientific approach with a source of mystery and wonder.

Mary Beth Edelson:

Mary Beth Edelson and her ritualistic practices with water interest me. She uses water to symbolize life, healing, and transformation and creates art that connects her to nature, spirituality, and feminism. Her performative rituals in waterfalls, rivers, and oceans are where she immerses herself in the element and invites others to join her. She also makes paintings, collages, and sculptures incorporating water imagery and materials as well. Her art is a way of expressing her personal and collective identity and challenging the patriarchal structures that oppress women and nature. I admire her courage, creativity, and vision. Performance is something I'd like to explore more within my art practice.

Sebastián Calfuqueo:

I admire Sebastián Calfuqueo's work because he explores the relationship between his Mapuche identity and the environment. He uses natural elements such as clay, water, and fire to create sculptures and installations reflecting his cultural heritage and personal experiences. His art challenges the stereotypes and discrimination that indigenous people face in Chile and beyond. His courage and creativity to express his voice and vision through his art inspires me.

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