New Museum: Chris Ofili

Saturday was rainy and miserable outside, so I decided to check out the Chris Ofili exhibition at the New Museum. I had never been to the New Museum before, or heard of Ofili, but after a coworker mentioned that he had gone and said that Ofili was famous for his elephant dung pieces, I thought it was worth a visit.

His most controversial work, The Holy Virgin Mary, is on display once again (15 years after Giuliani was so appalled by it he threatened to shut down the Brooklyn Museum), along with similar mixed-media canvasses, paintings and a few sculptures. The exhibition is small, occupying three galleries in the museum, and my only complaint is that I wish there were even more pieces on display.

After I got over the initial novelty of the strategically placed dung, I found myself drawn to his sculptures more than his canvas work. There were only a few sculptures scattered throughout, but his take on the Annunciation—with its beautifully contrasting textures and materials—was wonderful.

It's also hard not to love Shithead, a ball of his signature dung with a crude mouth containing real human teeth and topped with pieces of Ofili's own dreadlocks. Sometimes I become annoyed at the simplicity or shock-without-substance nature of some contemporary art shows or I just don't "get" them at all, but Ofili's work is intricate, powerful and definitely different than anything I've seen before.