Tariku Shiferaw “One Of These Black Boys”

Anthony Philip Fine Art

[Image: Tariku Shiferaw "The Blacker The Berry (Tupac)" Acrylic on plastic, 8 x 10in. (2016)]

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Anthony Philip Fine Art presents “One Of These Black Boys,” an exhibit of recent work by Brooklyn artist Tariku Shiferaw.

“One of These Black Boys” is an exploration of mark making as a means of staking out a space within our culture, a sort of declaration of the right to exist within the construct of the contemporary art machine and in the wider society. The paintings function as a placeholder for what may come, understanding that whatever the next iteration will be, it deserves to exist without fear of marginalization or appropriation by forces that do not represent the best interests of the “Other.” They are the unknown factor in an equation that is struggling to be resolved on its own terms.

Shiferaw’s paintings also develop a narrative quality by being tied to songs influential to the artist through the sharing of their titles, so that a painting becomes a visual representation of the lyric and cultural background of the music. Their aesthetic minimalism however, allows the viewer to bring a new, less literal, meaning to each piece and share in the experience as if walking across a bridge to gain a new vantage point.

Since attaining his MFA from Parsons in 2015, Tariku Shiferaw has quickly become an important young voice in painting in New York. “One of These Black Boys” is Tariku Shiferaw’s first solo New York gallery show and coincides with his inclusion in Occupy Museum’s “Debtfair” at the 2017 Whitney Biennial.