Kevin Beasley facts for kids

Kevin Beasley, born in 1985, is an American artist. He creates amazing art using sculpture, performance art, and sound installations. He lives and works in New York City. Beasley's art has been shown in big exhibitions. These include the Whitney Museum of American Art's Biennial in 2014 and MoMA PS1's Greater New York show in 2015.

Early Life and Learning

Kevin Beasley was born in Lynchburg, Virginia. He studied art at the College for Creative Studies in Detroit, Michigan, and earned his degree in 2007. Later, he went to Yale and finished his master's degree in 2012.

How Kevin Beasley Creates Art

Beasley is well-known for his sculptures. He often uses everyday items he finds, especially clothes. He also uses materials like resin and foam. While these materials are still soft, Beasley shapes them with his body. This process leaves marks that show his touch. His sculptures often feel very real and lifelike. Many of his artworks also have sound equipment inside them. He uses these for sound-based art shows or performances.

Important Art Shows

Beasley's art has been featured in many important exhibitions.

Whitney Biennial 2014

In 2014, Beasley was part of the Whitney Museum of American Art's Biennial. For this show, he made a special site-specific installation. This means the artwork was created just for that space. It included several sculptures with hidden microphones. These microphones picked up sounds from the museum and its visitors. The sculptures were made from sneakers and plastic, which are common materials in Beasley's work.

Cut to Swipe Exhibition

Beasley's work was also shown at the Museum of Modern Art in 2014-2015. This exhibition, called Cut to Swipe, focused on art made with electronics and new media.

Storylines at the Guggenheim

In 2015, the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum showed two of Beasley's artworks. These were called Strange Fruit: Part I and Strange Fruit: Part II. They were made from shoes and other found items. They also had microphones and speakers. These speakers would play back sounds from the museum visitors. The title "Strange Fruit" refers to a famous protest song. Using this title and Air Jordan shoes in his art makes people think about the visitors and also about Black people throughout history. The Guggenheim Museum bought these two artworks for its collection.

Studio Museum in Harlem

Beasley was an artist-in-residence at the Studio Museum in Harlem from 2013 to 2014. This means he worked and lived at the museum for 11 months. His work was shown in the museum's 2014 exhibition, Material Histories. This show featured art by Beasley and two other artists who were also in residence.

"A view of a landscape"

Beasley had his first solo exhibition at a New York museum at the Whitney Museum of American Art. It was called "A view of a landscape" and ran from December 15, 2018, to March 10, 2019. The show featured a large artwork that included a cotton gin motor from Maplesville, Alabama. This artwork explored the history of his family's land in the American South. The exhibition focused on how the cotton gin looked and sounded. During the show, there were also live performances and talks.

Live Performances

Beasley is also known for his performance art. In these shows, he often uses his sculptures to create live sound.

Whitney Biennial Performance

During the 2014 Whitney Biennial, Beasley "played" some of his sculptures. He touched and moved them around the gallery. Microphones hidden in the sculptures picked up the sounds of his body and the materials. These sounds were then made louder for the audience to hear.

I Want My Spot Back

Beasley also performs sound art without sculptures. In 2012, he performed I Want My Spot Back at the Museum of Modern Art. This piece was made only of a capella (singing without instruments) clips of rappers from the 1990s who had passed away. Beasley mixed and amplified these sounds live for the audience.

"A view of a landscape" Performances

During his 2018-2019 solo exhibition at the Whitney Museum, Beasley featured live performances. He performed with other artists like Taja Cheek, Eli Keszler, and Jlin. The cotton gin in his artwork became an instrument. Artists could change and process its sounds to create live music.

The Sound of Morning

For Performa 21, Beasley created The Sound of Morning in 2021. He used sculptures made from everyday objects and materials. Performers and microphones made sounds louder. In this work, Beasley combined sculpture, sound, performance, and art made for a specific place.

Where to Find His Art

Kevin Beasley's artworks are part of the collections of several major museums:

• Pérez Art Museum Miami
• The Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum
• The Museum of Modern Art
• San Francisco Museum of Modern Art
• Tate Modern
• Dallas Museum of Art
• Albright-Knox Art Gallery