By Oluseyi Akinyode
This article was originally published in DCTrending here.
The Rubell Museum is a must-see in DC’s Southwest waterfront neighborhood for those eager to dip their toes into contemporary art. Located in the former Randall Junior High School, the museum offers a unique opportunity to sample the private collection of Mera and Don Rubell. Founded two years ago, the museum reflects the Rubells’ commitment to making art accessible and creating dialogue within the community.
The Art of the Challenge part of the Alexandre Diop: Jooba, Jubba, L’Art du Defi, the Art of Challenge exhibit at the museum, showcases five potent works by the French-Senegalese artist. Diop tackles complex themes such as colonialism’s lingering effects, violence, and suffering. While the themes he explores are timeless, his choice of found materials adds a fresh perspective, transforming them into a powerful commentary on the contemporary issues he grapples with.
In Le Mensonge d’État (The Lie of The State), Diop repurposes text, wood, door hinges, and plastic to create a compelling reinterpretation of Olympia, Edouard Manet’s once-controversial masterpiece. Diop engages in dialogue with viewers by incorporating a ripped cover of Civilisation Ou Babarie, a seminal work by African historian and anthropologist Cheikh Anta Diop.
On the left side of the exhibit wall, Honi soit qui mal y pense (Shame be (to him) who thinks evil of it) riffs on Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres’s 1812 painting, La Grande Odalisqueanot, echoing similar themes to Olympia. Alongside a series of zig-zag lines, fabrics feature prominently in this composition, with three pieces of velvet-like material in yellow, deep blue, and blueish green serving as the artwork’s background. The fabrics extend slightly off the canvas, creating a sense the viewer has wandered into the subject’s interior world.
Like many early career artists who reference established works, such as Manet’s reimagining of Titian’s Venus of Urbino, the French-Senegalese artist draws inspiration from the art history canon. Taking a subversive turn, Diop asserts his unique perspective by prompting viewers to question prevailing narratives on identity, self, and agency, which is particularly meaningful in Africa’s social and political history. Diop stakes his place in the art world through these references as if to say, “Here I am, too.”
The most striking piece in the exhibition is titled Mondo Carne. It was inspired by the 1962 Mondo documentary, which depicts humans in bizarre situations. Mondo Carne’s scale demands attention, requiring viewers to step back and appreciate its grandeur. Yet, details like a notebook page, hockey stick, and gnashed teeth draw one close to discern the ferocity of its message.
Strewn across the canvas in disarray are dismembered body parts (skulls, teeth, limbs, ankles, and arms) amidst rich hues of deep reddish-brown, yellow, and purple. Pulsating across the canvas are gestural lines, marks, and frantic scribbles loosely framing the unfolding mayhem, conveying a sense of urgency and despair. With no space for the eye to rest, the painting can feel overwhelming and disorienting, evoking the chaos and disorder that violence leaves in its wake. In light of ongoing wars in Ukraine, Gaza, Yemen, and recently Haiti, Mondo Carne is a timely commentary on today’s realities, inviting viewers to reflect on the enduring power of art to speak to the human condition.
If you’re looking to give your eyes a rest, consider the triptych, L’ Incroyable Traversée d’Abdoulaye Le Grand, Troisième de la Lignée (The Incredible Crossing of Abdoulaye the Great, Third in Line to the Throne). Despite its innocuous title, the subject matter is anything but tame. Diop addresses the post-independence struggles of many African nations, notably Senegal, whose third president, Abdoulaye Wade, held office for just over twelve years, a tenure marked by allegations of corruption, nepotism, and human rights violations.
This artwork consists of three panels, each featuring figures that blend human and monkey forms in profiles reminiscent of ancient Egyptian art. On closer examination, these figures, created from collages of consumer goods, reveal a coded message discernible to those who have spent time in African countries. The hidden message critiques colonialism. The materials bear the names of various European brands consumed in Africa and produced from raw materials extracted from countries under colonial rule. The irony is highlighted by an ankle constructed from a gift wrapper adorned with the words “Home Sweet Home”, underscoring the exploitation that enriched European nations at Africa’s expense.
The final artwork in the exhibition, another triptych titled L’ Histoire du Monde – Le Temps et L’ Espace (The History of the World – Time and Space), stands in contrast to the crowded energy of Mondo Carne and the multiple figures in The Incredible Crossing of Abdoulaye The Great. Wood provides a prominent background, its surface colored with deep red hues in certain areas and interspersed with textures of mattress foam, a ruler, burnt plastic, and scraps of metal. A few scattered English letters and words hint at a broader narrative.
Two female figures, one adorned with African braids on her head, feature prominently on the first and third panels. The artist emphasizes their femininity with forms crafted from gold-colored metals and pinkish hues. Based on public interviews with the artist, the figure on the right holds an apple. This inclusion references the biblical tale of Adam and Eve, another recurring motif in works by old masters that signify humanity’s downfall.
Examining The History of The World – Time & Space as an origin story allows us to dig deep into the exhibition’s themes of lust, violence, greed, corruption, and power. This interpretation provides a powerful thread connecting the five artworks. If the challenge is to tell the story of humanity through art, Diop has woven a masterful tale of its shortcomings. The discarded materials used in the artworks become testaments to how human behavior impacts our fellow humans and the environment. Diops’s use of these materials reinforces the message that humanity’s history is not just one of achievements but also one inextricably linked to its flaws.
The Art of the Challenge exhibition at the Rubell Museum in Washington, DC, runs through October 2024. Admission is free for DC residents with a valid ID card.
