Six weeks and 30 works ordered on, The exhibition is finally ready to name its next great American artist, awarding the champion $10,000 and a solo showcase at the Hirshhorn. But first, the season finale set one final task for the six contestants, asking them to create self-portraits to reflect on the long, weird (and if you look, sometimes dull) reality TV competition in which they participated.
What they offer is typical of each of their respective styles, aided by newly and hilariously placed mirrors at each of their work desks. Jennifer Warren’s self-portrait is painted, Jamaal Barber’s is a linocut, while our conceptual queen Jillian Mayer’s is a “poem of moving images” compiling her video selfies to interrogate her digital footprint.
Work in progress by Clare Kambhu. Photo: Screenshot of The exhibitionepisode 6.
Clare Kambhu and Baseera Khan chose to explore their relationships with their bodies: the former with twin paintings of her scar and birthmark, and the latter with a life-size collage pasted with real scans of her face.
Misha Kahn is in the process of sculpting a bust of himself in virtual reality, meant to capture his self-doubt over the past six weeks, but not before casting his own face in the most DIY way possible.
“I put a lot of myself into this one,” he said.
Misha Kahn creating a mold of his face. Photo: Screenshot of The exhibitionepisode 6.
The most successful commission, however, came from Frank Buffalo Hyde. The artist painted a restrained black-on-black self-portrait to highlight his marginalization as an Indigenous artist. To drive the point home, the painted Frank wears a T-shirt printed with the word “Invisible”.
In awarding Buffalo Hyde its first win, the judges, Hirshhorn director Melissa Chiu, artist and writer Kenny Schachter and art collector Keith Rivers have praised her portrayal skill and versatility throughout the series. Unaccustomed to painting self-portraits, Buffalo Hyde had tried to keep this week’s work “simple”, but it was nevertheless indicative of its creator.
“Frank brought it home,” Chiu said. “We see the invisible native.”
Frank Buffalo Hyde, Invisible/Native (2023). Photo: Screenshot of The exhibitionepisode 6.
There were also nice reviews for the other commissions. Schachter called Baseera Khan’s woodblock collage “nice work but a little easy”, Chiu deemed Kambhu’s piece “brave”, and Warren’s final self-portrait is praised for capturing the artist’s growing confidence. self-taught.
Buffalo Hyde’s win, however, didn’t necessarily put him in contention for the top spot. Remember that the show insists that contestants will be judged on all of their work over six weeks, whether they won commissions or not.
Based on this, the panel then chose three finalists to each create a final piece to be judged onsite at the annual Hirshhorn-w Ball.who offers us the show’s cute tagline: “We’d love to see your work at the prom.”
Experts praised Baseera Khan for turning personal issues into art, Clare Kambhu for her clever work and Misha Kahn for her “undeniable talent”. The finalists were then given two months to create artwork in any subject and then viewers we were off to the ball.
THE Hirshhorn Ball 2022 had a Pop Art-inspired theme, meaning we were treated to animated views of the sculpture garden with attendees dressed in Warhol wigs and jackets sporting the comic styles of Lichtenstein. But The exhibition strangely chose the Hirshhorn Plaza to install the works of its three finalists, so the general atmosphere is less Pop, more Brutalist. Connection?
Clare Kambhu presenting her canvas, Presidency (2023), to judges Melissa Chiu, Kenny Schachter and Keith Rivers at Hirshhorn Plaza. Photo: Screenshot of The exhibitionepisode 6.
Here, Kambhu unveiled his massive photorealistic canvas, depicting two chairs overturned on desks at the end of a school day, blending, as always, his artistic and educational practices. The work, she said, “humanizes the furniture to reflect how chaotic it is to work in the system.”
Misha Kahn produced what he called a “separate but related” body of work comprising a 3D printed sculpture of a lamp and a painted digital collage. Put together, the pieces were meant to express his feelings about not fitting neatly into the “artist” category. He explained, “The lamp is barely a lamp and the painting is barely a painting.”
Misha Kahn with his painting, part of his diptych, A loose line (2023). Photo: Screenshot of The exhibitionepisode 6.
Baseera Khan, and not the least, created a sculpture by 3D printing scans of her body, in reference to a Statue of deity Naro Dakini from the 18th century, held the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Asian Art. Intended to represent female power, her sculpture was interspersed “through chakra” with plexiglass panes to represent the twists and challenges that come with the struggle for liberation.
And it was work that won Khan the top prize. While the judges praised the three artists for producing highly accomplished pieces, Khan’s body of work triumphed for bringing together personal and universal issues, while crossing different media.
Baseera Khan with her sculpture, the liberator (2023). Photo: Screenshot of The exhibitionepisode 6.
Her sculpture, Schachter said, “uses the past to express the present” and, according to Chiu, “speaks of women’s rights and the desire for equality.”
Khan was obviously in shock when his name was announced. “It’s not a scam, is it?” is all she could say. It’s all real, she assured, and she will indeed have her solo exhibit at the Hirshhorn and raise $10,000. With that, Khan rips his heels off and walks back across the plaza with the barefoot crew. It’s a well-deserved moment.
Follow Artnet News on Facebook:
Want to stay one step ahead of the art world? Subscribe to our newsletter to receive breaking news, revealing interviews and incisive reviews that move the conversation forward.
