Controversial nude self-portraits inspired by Hindu religious art at Columbia Museum of Art

THE STATE
By Lezlie Patterson

“The Ajak Web Cycle” by Renee Cox, 2016. Mixed media; 46 inches by 46 inches by 5 inches. Columbia Museum of Art courtesy of the artist

COLUMBIA, SC---“Soul Culture” is not your grandmother’s art exhibit. The exhibition of Renee Cox’s work – considered controversial by some, boundary-breaking by others – open[ed] Friday, Dec. 15, at the Columbia Museum of Art. A guided tour will be 2 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 17. The artwork in the exhibition deconstructs issues of race and gender using the body as central image to promote positivity and empowerment. Cox transforms her photographic portraits into hypnotic video and mandala-like reliefs influenced by Hindu and Buddhist religious art, the visual escapism of 1960s psychedelia, and the use of fractals in African culture. [More]

Columbia Museum of Art: “Renee Cox: Soul Culture” (Through April 22, 2018); 1515 Main Street, Columbia, South Carolina; 803-799-2810; columbiamuseum.org