(b. 1977 - Los Angeles, CA) draws from Renaissance and French rococo painting, depicting young black men in iconic poses that reference religious and historical figures. The artist states, "I'm fascinated with the ways powerful white men have been depicted in the history of Western easel painting. It is a craft that has evolved into a vocabulary of signs that tells one that the subject is important. The absence of young, black, urban men in painting says something about our society. Wiley continues, "Painting is about the world that we live in. Black men live in the world. My choice to include them is my way of saying yes to us." Wiley's models are young men he meets on the street, both in Harlem and in Los Angeles. They are asked to assume poses from Titian and Tiepolo paintings while dressed in their street clothes. His use of French rococo, with its garishness and vulgarity, complements the flashy attire and display of material consumption evident in hip-hop culture. States Brian Keith Jackson of Vibe magazine, The portraits examine not only how African-American males are viewed by others, but also how they see themselves. Wiley hones in on their desire to pose, to be seen, to keep it real, but above all, to represent." The artist earned a BFA from the San Francisco Art Institute, CA, in 1999 and an MFA from Yale University School of Art, New Haven, CT in 2001. He has exhibited his work in New York and Los Angeles and received a grant from the Rema Hort Mann Foundation in 2002. 2003.339