Documente Academic
Documente Profesional
Documente Cultură
JMC
Hebru&Brantley&Presents&When&It&Comes&Back&To&Haunt&Me&&
Acclaimed)Chicago)Artist)Launches)Exhibit)inside)Atlantas)Westside)Cultural)Arts)Center)
)
(Atlanta,& GA)! May! 8,! 2015! +! Renowned! Chicago! based! artist! Hebru! Brantley! is! proud! to!
announce!When!It!Comes!Back!To!Haunt!Me,!an!exhibition!debuting!this!May!at!Atlantas!
Westside!Cultural!Arts!Center.&!When!It!Comes!Back!To!Haunt!Me!will!debut!with!a!special!
VIP!preview!on!May!8th,!open!to!the!public!the!following!day!on!May!9th!and!remain!open!
through!DATE.&&
Brantley! breaks! down! the! walls! of! cultural! boundaries! through! his! art.! Inspired! by! his!
1980s!Chicago!upbringing,!Brantleys!work!touches!on!tough!subjects!in!a!way!that!may!be!
easily! digestible! to! the! viewer,! by! telling! his! stories! through! youthful! characters! and! their!
adventures.!Brantleys!work!can!be!described!as!pop+infused!contemporary!art!inspired!by!
Japanese! anima! and! the! bold! aesthetics! of! street! art! pioneers! similar! to! Jean! Michael!
Basquiat,! Kaws! and! Keith! Haring.! While! spray! paint! is! often! at! the! forefront! of! his! mixed+
media!illustrations,!Brantley!utilizes!a!plethora!of!mediums!from!oil,!acrylic!and!watercolor!
to!non+traditional!mediums!including!coffee!and!tea.!!
Looking!beyond!the!themes!of!previous!exhibitions,!Parade)Day)Rain,)Everyones)Everything)
and)Yesterdays)Losers,)When)It)Comes)Back)to)Haunt)Me)takes!on!a!more!serious!tone!as!it!
critiques! the! paradox! of! imagery! and! iconic! characters! idolized! today! within! popular!
culture.! The! exhibition! is! an! objective! exploration! into! imagery! that! the! masses! have!
become!attached!to!over!time,!imagery!that!happens!to!lack!depictions!of!people!of!color.!!
INSERT"E&FROM&HEBRU&HERE&
When) it) Comes) Back) To) Haunt) Me) seeks! to! redefine! the! rhetoric! and! mythos! within! pop!
cultures!imagery!within!our!world.!To!do!so,!Brantley!utilizes!people!of!color!and!the!black!
body!to!transpose!and!reimagine!this!thinking!and!culture,!delineating!the!idea!that!African+
Americans! do! not! exist! as! heroes,! but! only! as! the! stereotypes! shown! in! the! mainstream!
media!and!art!world.!Outdated,!yet!perpetuated!stereotypes!such!as!the!slave,!Uncle!Tom,!
Mammy! or! even! the! Harlot! &! Thug! regulate! societys! views! regarding! people! of! color.! ! To!
combat! that! idea,! this! exhibition! effectively! inserts! African+American! people! into! popular!
culture! by! depicting! popular! superheroes! in! a! new! light.! Brantley! hopes! the! pieces! will!
serve!to!open!up!the!conversation!about!the!past!and!present,!as!well!as!inspire!people!to!
evaluate!how!ethnocentrism!has!played!a!negative!role!in!popular!culture!to!date.!!
!
Recognized! nationally! for! public! works! and! solo! shows,! Hebru! Brantley! has! exhibited! in!
London,!Geneva,!San!Francisco,!Atlanta,!Miami,!Seattle,!Los!Angeles!and!New!York!including!
Art! Basel! Switzerland,! Art! Basel! Miami,! Scope! NYC! and! frieze! London.! ! Brantley! has! been!
recognized!in!publications!including!ArtNet,!Chicago!Tribune,!Complex!Magazine,!NY!Daily!
News! and! NY! Post.! His! work! has! been! collected! by! power! couple! Jay+Z! and! Beyonce,! The!
Pritzker!Family,!George!Lucas!and!Swizz!Beatz.!Brantley!has!collaborated!with!brands!like!
Nike,! Hublot,! Red! Bull! and! Adidas.! Brantley! earned! a! B.A.! in! Film! from! Clark! Atlanta!
University!and!has!a!background!in!design!and!media!illustration.!!
!
&
COMM