‘I’m Not Giving People What They’re Used To:’ Awol Erizku on the Challenges Inherent in Remixing His Own Work

Naomi Rea for Artnet News

The artist's wide-ranging practice refuses easy categorization.

 

For his latest exhibition, Awol Erizku has transformed the white cube at Ben Brown Fine Arts into a Black space.

 

Even if you think the artist’s decision to literally paint the walls black is a bit on the nose, the actual content of the exhibition is certainly less heavy-handed than his last outing with the gallery in 2017, which included a graffiti-laden door emblazoned with Trump’s name and a swastika. In “Cosmic Drill,” on view through April 6, Erizku revisits many of the same issues evoked in that earlier show, albeit with a little more trust in the viewer to do the work of unpacking them.

February 1, 2023