Artist
Paul Mpagi Sepuya(American, born 1982)American, born 1982
CultureAmerican
Titles
- Mirror Study (Self Portrait) (_Q5A2059)
Date2016
MediumInkjet print
DimensionsImage (at opening): 31 5/16 × 23 3/8 in. (79.5 × 59.4 cm)
Credit LineMuseum purchase funded by Photo Forum 2017
Object number2017.250
Not on view
Explore Further
Department
PhotographySpecial Collections
Object Type
As a queer black man, Paul Mpagi Sepuya explores the way
portraiture—and particularly self-portraiture—has the potential to both reveal
and withhold personal identity from the viewer. In this visually complex image,
Sepuya points his camera at a mirror that is partially covered by a torn
self-portrait. The artist’s face—the very element that, by convention, discloses
the inner character—is visible in neither the representation nor the reflection.
Having solved the visual riddle of Sepuya’s picture, the viewer is left with
the more profound and unresolved question of his identity.
ProvenanceThe artist; [Yancey Richardson Gallery, New York]; purchased by MFAH, 2017.
Inscriptions, Signatures and Marks
Printed in black, verso, applied label: YANCEY RICHARDSON GALLERY // Paul Mpagi Sepuya // Mirror Study (Self Portrait) // (_Q5A2059), 2016 // Archival Pigment Print // 32 x 24 inches // Edition 4 of 5 // LUM 37255.4 // PSepuya [signed in black ink] // 525 WEST 22ND STREET NYC 10011 646 230 9610 [phone number printed in red] // Y | R // [small thumbnail of image]
Signed in black ink, verso, applied label: PSepuya
N/A
Cataloguing data may change with further research.
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