American Royalty: It's Not What You Think

Mrs. Waldorf Astor by Kehinde Wiley, Oil on linen, 2012 I'm insecure about art. I don't know enough to be an art snob. But I don't want to be thought of as someone who doesn't know kitsch when it's staring at her. So I wasn't sure what to think of Kehinde Wiley. His paintings are meant to startle, in his own words "go for the jugular." His colors and patterns are bold. His subject's postures and expressions are intense. His realistic paintings are larger than life. When I saw his show at the Sea...