Mohammed Omer Khalil New Work (review)

Mohammed Omer Khalil Ne w W or k L — Skoto Gallery New York, 2002 Shift #2, 2001, 44" x 43", oil and collage on canvas The idea of an Af rican modernit y as far as art i s concerned may st il l cause raised eyebrows i n some quar t er s—but onl y for t hose who haven't been payi ng at t ent i on. Af rica's l ong hi st or i cal engagem ent w i t h Europe has been bot h ant agoni st i c and i nt i mat e. As we know, t r adi t i onal Af r i can scul pt ur e br ought t o Europe dur i ng t he lat t er ni net eent h cent ury, provided a spark whi ch cont r i but ed t o a gl obal moder ni st r evol ut i on i n ar t . However, i t has remained f or an exhi bi t i on such as Okw ui Enw ezor 's recent The Short Cent ury, at PS1 t o begi n pr ovi di ng t he much needed crit ical, int el l ect ual , pol it ical , and hi st or ical backgr oundi ng which may si t uat e cont empor ar y Af r i can art ist s as i nt egr al part icipant s in t he moder ni st and p ost - m od ernist program of t he last cent ury. Mohammed Omer Khal il i s an i nt er nat i onal l y act ive art ist who has recent ly show n pai nt i ngs and pr i nt s at Skot o Gal l ery i n Chelsea. Whil e he i s not among t he art ist s f eat ured in Enwezor's The Short Cent ury, t he revelat ory l ight f rom t hat show begi ns t o i l Lumi nat e t hose mul t i val ent i nf l uences and al t er nat i ng current s whi ch ani mat e his cont emporary art . Khal il was bor n in Burri, Sudan, in 1936 and gr aduat ed f rom t he School of Fine and Appl i ed Art in Khar t oum. Lat er, in Florence, It al y, he st udi ed f resco pai nt i ng and advanced pr i nt maki ng t echni ques. As a mast er print maker in his New York at elier, he has produced edi t i ons f or ot her art ist s such as Louise Nevel son and Ji m Dine. His ow n art is in many col l ect i ons ar ound t he world r angi ng f rom t he Met r opol i t an Museum and t he Br ookl yn Museum of Art , t o t he Bi bl i ot heque Nat ional e, t he Grenoble Museum in France, and t he Nat i onal Museum in Am m an, Jor dan. Khal il 's cosmopol i t an pai nt i ngs do not , on t he surf ace, engage in any sort of Af rican r omant i ci sm. But it i s self -aware and underst andi ng of i t s i ndet er mi nat e cul t ural l ocat i on. This i s work emanat i ng f rom t he i nt er nat i onal met ropol is hi nt i ng cont i nual l y of compl exi t i es, bot h art ist ic and subj ect i ve. I n many w ays i t shares an omni vor ous i ncl usi veness like t he work of many younger art ist s f or w hom nat i onalit y, race, cl ass, and ot her bar r i ers have become permeable and re-def inabl e boundar i...