Ligon, a noted American artist who came to prominence in the 1980s, is known for his wry, edgy explorations of how our personal experiences and selves are formed at the intersection of race and nationality, gender and sexuality, and history and popular culture. The exhibition includes an on-site installation and Ligon's text-based works, which transform the words of such figures as James Baldwin and Richard Pryor into resonant, evocative images.

The exhibition concludes its tour at the Wexner Center after traveling to the Contemporary Arts Museum Houston, The Andy Warhol Museum in Pittsburgh, and the Musee d'Art Moderne Grand-Duc Jean in Luxembourg.

Organized by The Power Plant Contemporary Art Gallery at Harbourfront Centre, Toronto. Curated by Wayne Baerwaldt and Thelma Golden.


image credits

Warm Broad Glow, 2005
Neon and paint
24 x 180 in.
Courtesy of the artist and Regen Projects, Los Angeles

Malcolm X, Sun, Frederick Douglass, Boy with Bubbles (version 2) # 8, 2001
Flashe paint and silkscreen on paper
23 x 16 1/2 in.
Collection of Gregory R. Miller, New York
Image courtesy of the artist and Regan Projects, Los Angeles

Niggers ain't scared #1, 1996
Oil stick and acrylic on linen
30 x 30 in.
Courtesy of the artist and Regen Projects, Los Angeles