Dive into Frieze Los Angeles with Art:LIVE

Art:LIVE is a series of original video content that brings to the viewer accessible expert insights into recent developments in contemporary art and culture, produced in partnership with Frieze’s Global Lead Partner Deutsche Bank.  

Returning for the first in-person fair since 2020, and with a brand new location in Beverly Hills, this year’s Frieze Los Angeles offers a chance to experience the work of the most exciting living artists and survey broader developments across the contemporary art sector, whether in stand-out solo presentations or the trailblazing young galleries in Focus LA. This edition of Art:LIVE will seek to take the pulse of the moment, featuring up close encounters with significant artworks and installations, and candid commentary from artists, gallerists and experts — bringing the buzz of the fair to wherever you are. Meanwhile, renowned Los Angeles-born artist Kehinde Wiley talks to Art:LIVE about his career – including being commissioned for the presidential portrait of Barack Obama, recently on view at LACMA, new work on view at Huntington Library in Los Angeles – participating as a juror in this year’s Deutsche Bank Frieze Los Angeles Film Award.

Kehinde Wiley (b. 1977, Los Angeles) is a world-renowned visual artist, best known for his vibrant portrayals of contemporary African-American and African-Diasporic individuals that subvert the hierarchies and conventions of European and American portraiture. Working in the mediums of painting, sculpture, and video, Wiley’s portraits challenge and reorient art-historical narratives, awakening complex sociopolitical issues that many would prefer remain muted. 

In 2018 Wiley became the first African-American artist to paint an official U.S. Presidential portrait for the Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery. Former U.S. President Barack Obama selected Wiley for this honor. Wiley is the recipient of the U.S. Department of State’s Medal of Arts, Harvard University’s W.E.B. Du Bois Medal, and France’s distinction of Knight of the Order of Arts and Letters. He holds a BFA from San Francisco Art Institute, an MFA from Yale University, and honorary doctorates from the Rhode Island School of Design and San Francisco Art Institute. He has held solo exhibitions throughout the United States and internationally and his works are included in the collections of over 60 public institutions around the world. Wiley is the Founder and President of Black Rock Senegal. He lives and works in Dakar, Lagos and New York.

Watch previous editions of Art:LIVE featuring guest interviews and fair round-ups here.