Decompositioning

Jeff Sonhouse explores Black masculinity through fantastical portraits of masked, neatly dressed Black American men. The mask hides the identity of his subject and undermines traditional portraiture, but reveals the eyes, nose and mouth, features most closely associated with racial stereotypes. Sonhouse’s confrontational figures are a spoof on stereotypes, and also have a spiritual presence, acting as both oracle and trickster.

Sonhouse regularly uses combustible materials such as matches and charcoal, which speak to the fragility of representation and demonstrate the artist’s dry wit, suggesting that the entire composition could go, or has gone, up in flames. Piano wire and wood scraps extend well beyond the canvas, blurring the line between painting and sculpture. The swirling piano that breaks apart in the background acts as a metaphor for the parallels between musical and visual composition building. In these ways, "Decompositioning" functions as commentary on the act of painting itself.