Artist: Derrick Adams
Title: Mirroring Idealism
Medium: Wall Relief of UV Curable Pigment on Mirror Dibond
Size: 28 1/4" x 53 5/8" x 3"
Edition: 29/40
Publisher: Co-Published by Carolina Nitsch and Elisabeth Wingate, New York
Inscription: Original Gallery Label on Verso
Year: 2021
Documentation: Includes Gallery Certificate of Authenticity
In "Mirroring Idealism", Derrick Adams explores themes of self-perception, identity, and the intersection of the personal with the social through a striking mixed-media wall relief. Executed in 2021, the work is composed of UV curable pigment on Mirror Dibond, a reflective support that both implicates the viewer and expands the conceptual reach of the composition. By using mirrored surfaces, Adams creates a dynamic interplay between representation and reflection, inviting the audience to literally see themselves within the work.
This editioned piece, numbered 29 of 40, exemplifies Adams's interest in how contemporary culture shapes, frames, and often refracts notions of Black identity. The mirrored ground destabilizes a fixed reading of the subject, merging the viewer's image with Adams's forms to question the distance between art object and lived experience. The work's layered construction and luminous surface echo Adams's broader practice, which moves fluidly between painting, sculpture, performance, and installation to examine representation in everyday life.
The title, "Mirroring Idealism", underscores the dual concerns of aspiration and self-image. The reflective quality is not merely a material choice but a conceptual strategy: it compels confrontation with the ideals projected by and onto individuals in society. In doing so, Adams situates the work within ongoing dialogues about visibility, cultural narratives, and the construction of identity in both personal and collective dimensions.
Co-published by Carolina Nitsch and Elisabeth Wingate in New York, the work demonstrates the collaborative spirit that often supports Adams's multifaceted practice. The presence of the original gallery label on the verso and the accompanying certificate of authenticity further emphasize its position within the artist's recognized body of editioned works.
Measuring over four feet in width, "Mirroring Idealism" asserts itself as both a sculptural object and a conceptual mirror, one that extends the space of viewing into a meditation on selfhood, representation, and the ideals we carry. It embodies Adams's continuing commitment to work that is visually arresting, materially inventive, and culturally resonant.
About Derrick Adams
Derrick Adams is an American contemporary artist whose multidisciplinary practice spans painting, sculpture, collage, performance, video, and installation. Born in Baltimore, Maryland, in 1970, Adams studied at Pratt Institute, where he received his BFA, and later earned his MFA from Columbia University. He is also an alumnus of the Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture. His career is marked by an exploration of Black identity and culture within the framework of contemporary life, often interrogating the intersections of representation, material culture, and social space.
Adams's work frequently incorporates imagery and ideas drawn from popular culture, consumer aesthetics, and the history of art, blending them to reveal nuanced perspectives on how Black identity is constructed and perceived. His use of bold color, geometric fragmentation, and layered compositions reflects both formalist concerns and conceptual inquiries. Through collage and painting in particular, Adams has developed a signature visual language that deconstructs and reassembles images of Black life, emphasizing multiplicity and complexity rather than singular narratives.
Beyond two-dimensional work, Adams has engaged with performance and installation to explore themes of leisure, community, and cultural resilience. His “Floaters" series, for example, depicts Black figures in moments of relaxation, floating in pools or on inflatable rafts, a deliberate reclamation of leisure imagery historically underrepresented in depictions of African American life. His performance-based works, including collaborations with choreographers and theater practitioners, extend his investigations into how identity and narrative are embodied and enacted.
Adams has exhibited widely in the United States and internationally. Major solo exhibitions have been presented at institutions such as The Studio Museum in Harlem, the Museum of Arts and Design in New York, and the Baltimore Museum of Art. His work has also been included in significant group exhibitions addressing themes of identity, culture, and representation in the contemporary era. In addition to his studio practice, Adams has been an influential educator and cultural advocate, serving in teaching and mentorship roles while promoting broader visibility for artists of color.
Critical discourse surrounding Adams's practice often situates him within ongoing dialogues about the politics of representation in contemporary art. His work resists reductive categorizations by balancing critical engagement with celebratory affirmations of Black cultural expression. In doing so, Adams contributes to a larger tradition of African American artists who use formal innovation and conceptual rigor to challenge and expand dominant narratives.
Derrick Adams lives and works in Brooklyn, New York. His practice continues to evolve across mediums, maintaining a consistent focus on the intersections of art, culture, and lived experience. Through his multifaceted body of work, Adams underscores the vitality of everyday life as a site of creativity, agency, and visibility.
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