Kehinde Wiley: A New Republic

Filled with reproductions of Kehinde Wiley’s bold, colorful, and monumental work, this book encompasses the artist’s various series of paintings as well as his sculptural work—which boldly explore ideas about race, power, and tradition. Celebrated for his classically styled paintings that depict African American men in heroic poses, Kehinde Wiley is among the expanding ranks of prominent black artists—such as Sanford Biggers, Yinka Shonibare, Mickalene Thomas, and Lynette Yiadom-Boakye—who are reworking art history and questioning its depictions of people of color. Co-published with the Brooklyn Museum of Art for the major touring retrospective, this volume surveys Wiley’s career from 2001 to the present. It includes early portraits of the men Wiley observed on Harlem’s streets, and which laid the foundation for his acclaimed reworkings of Old Master paintings by Titian, van Dyke, Manet, and others, in which he replaces historical subjects with young African American men in contemporary attire: puffy jackets, sneakers, hoodies, and baseball caps. Also included is a generous selection from Wiley’s ongoing World Stage project; several of his enormous Down paintings; striking male portrait busts in bronze; and examples from the artist’s new series of stained glass windows. Accompanying the illustrations are essays that introduce readers to the arc of Wiley’s career, its critical reception, and ongoing evolution.

Hardcover / 192 pages

Dimensions: 10" x 12.5"

Organized by the Brooklyn Museum, Giants: Art from the Dean Collection of Swizz Beatz and Alicia Keys brings together monumental contemporary art and historic masterworks from the personal collection of Swizz Beatz and Alicia Keys. On view from September 19, 2026 – February 28, 2027 at the Indianapolis Museum of Art at Newfields, this landmark exhibition explores Black identity, creativity, power, and cultural legacy through the work of some of today's most influential artists. Learn More