Artwork: Awol Erizku, Come and See Me ft. Drake – PARTYNEXTDOO,R 2016, Acrylic on wooden panel, 72 x 96 i. Courtesy of Nina Johnson, Miami.
Born in Ethiopia and raised in the South Bronx, Los Angeles-based artist Awol Erizku beautifully embodies the zeitgeist with I Was Going to Call It Your Name But You Didn’t Let Me, a new series of 20 paintings and conceptual sound collage currently at Nina Johnson, Miami, now through January 7, 2017.
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The exhibition takes a the image of the beautifully manicured hand of Queen Nefertiti holding a rose, appropriated from nail salon signage where ErIzku keeps his studio, as its central motif for a series of paintings. Throughout the works, elements of the cityscape take shape, be it the patches of buffed-out segments of paint, the ubiquitous cross outs of a graff writer who lives to hate, or the appearance of Rihanna’s adorable “badgirlriri” avi.
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Bearing the titles of songs like “Where Do We Go” by Solange, “Love Can Be” by Yeek”, and “First Take” by Travis Scott, Erizku’s paintings are accompanied by a sound collage that includes work by Drake, Future, and Party Next Door, fusing the visual and sonic realms to create an immersive environment that evokes the here and now, invoking the cultural moment that speaks to people from all walks of life, resonating a deep, harmonious melody backed by a throbbing bass.
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