IN RELATABLE IMAGES, Meleko Mokgosi explores weighty themes. He makes history paintings about the politics, culture, and history of Southern Africa. Post-colonial scenes of the quotidian are visions of democracy.
For five years, Mokgosi has been pursuing “Democratic Intuition” (2014-present), a singular project, composed of eight chapters, each realized as an exhibition. The latest in the series, “Meleko Mokgosi: Bread, Butter, and Power” (Feb. 11-July1, 2018), at the Fowler Museum at UCLA, features 20 episodic panel paintings. The works consider issues of feminism, gendering, and the “many ways that democratic concepts influence our lives, loves, and relationships on macro- and micro-levels.” The exhibition is the artist’s first solo museum show in Los Angeles.
Born in Francistown, Botswana, Mokgosi lives and works in New York City. He received his undergraduate degree from Williams College (2007), the same year he participated in the Independent Study Program at the Whitney Museum of American Art. Mokgosi earned an MFA from the Interdisciplinary Studio Program at UCLA in 2011, and was a 2011-12 Artist-in-Residence at the Studio Museum in Harlem. His West Coast exhibition is balanced by an East Coast show, “Meleko Mokgosi: Acts of Resistance” currently on view at the Baltimore Museum of Art. CT
READ MORE ABOUT THE FOWLER EXHIBITION
TOP IMAGE: Meleko Mokgosi: Bread, Butter, and Power, 2018. Installation view, Fowler Museum at UCLA. | Courtesy the artist and Honor Fraser, Los Angeles. Photo © Monica Nouwens
BOOKSHELF
“Meleko Mokgosi: Pax Kaffraria” documents one of Meleko Mokgosi’s earlier series (2010-2014) and was published by the Hammer Museum.
Meleko Mokgosi: Bread, Butter, and Power, 2018. Fowler Museum at UCLA. | Courtesy the artist and Honor Fraser, Los Angeles. Photo © Monica Nouwens
Meleko Mokgosi: Bread, Butter, and Power, 2018. Installation view, Fowler Museum at UCLA. | Courtesy the artist and Honor Fraser, Los Angeles. Photo © Monica Nouwens
Meleko Mokgosi: Bread, Butter, and Power, 2018. Fowler Museum at UCLA. | Courtesy the artist and Honor Fraser, Los Angeles. Photo © Monica Nouwens
Meleko Mokgosi: Bread, Butter, and Power, 2018. Fowler Museum at UCLA. | Courtesy the artist and Honor Fraser, Los Angeles. Photo © Monica Nouwens
Meleko Mokgosi: Bread, Butter, and Power, 2018. Installation view, Fowler Museum at UCLA. | Courtesy the artist and Honor Fraser, Los Angeles. Photo © Monica Nouwens
Meleko Mokgosi: Bread, Butter, and Power, 2018. Fowler Museum at UCLA. | Courtesy the artist and Honor Fraser, Los Angeles. Photo © Monica Nouwens
