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MARCUS LESLIE SINGLETON
Return from Exile
December 14, 2023 – January 27, 2024

MARCUS LESLIE SINGLETON  Dee Dee 2023

MARCUS LESLIE SINGLETON

Dee Dee
2023

Oil and spray paint on panel

60 by 48 in. 152.4 by 121.9 cm.

MARCUS LESLIE SINGLETON Elliyoun 2023

MARCUS LESLIE SINGLETON
Elliyoun
2023
Oil, spray paint, glitter and adhesive on wood panels
Triptych, overall: 60 by 128 in. 152.4 by 325.1 cm.
Left panel: 60 by 40 in. 152.4 by 101.6 cm
Center panel: 60 by 48 in. 152.4 by 121.9 cm
Right panel: 60 by 40 in. 152.4 by 101.6 cm

MARCUS LESLIE SINGLETON   Man's Soul Turning into a Rock 2023

MARCUS LESLIE SINGLETON 

Man's Soul Turning into a Rock
2023 

Oil, oil stick and spray paint on panel (diptych) 

Diptych, overall: 72 by 96 in. 182.9 by 243.8 cm. 
Each panel: 72 by 48 in. 182.9 by 121.9 cm. 

MARCUS LESLIE SINGLETON  Emerald Voice 2023

MARCUS LESLIE SINGLETON

Emerald Voice
2023

Oil and spray paint on panel

Diptych, overall: 60 by 96 in. 152.4 by 243.8 cm.
Each panel: 60 by 48 in. 152.4 by 121.9 cm.

MARCUS LESLIE SINGLETON  Helen's Hallway-Study of Yellow Vase 2023

MARCUS LESLIE SINGLETON

Helen's Hallway-Study of Yellow Vase
2023

Oil and glitter on panel

72 by 47 7/8 in. 182.9 by 121.6 cm.

MARCUS LESLIE SINGLETON  Shea Butter Babies 2023

MARCUS LESLIE SINGLETON

Shea Butter Babies
2023

Oil, spray paint and glitter glue on panel

48 by 60 in. 121.9 by 152.4 cm.

MARCUS LESLIE SINGLETON ​​​​​​​Blue Angels 2023

MARCUS LESLIE SINGLETON
Blue Angels
2023

Oil and spray paint on panel

48 by 60 in. 121.9 by 152.4 cm.

MARCUS LESLIE SINGLETON  Razor 2023

 

MARCUS LESLIE SINGLETON

Razor
2023

Oil and spray paint on wood panel

Diptych, overall: 60 by 96 in. 152.4 by 243.8 cm.

Press Release

Mitchell-Innes & Nash is pleased to feature new work by Marcus Leslie Singleton in his inaugural show with the gallery. On view from December 14, 2023 through January 27, 2024, Return from Exile showcases 10 new paintings, including the artist’s largest paintings to date, and his first exhibited video. A deeply personal show, Return from Exile confronts issues of visibility, spirituality and the historical significance of everyday moments.

“We are not bound by our histories. I don’t believe we have to keep doing the same things we used to do under the umbrella of tradition,” said Singleton. “That is what I’m critiquing and challenging in the show—attempting to reconstruct a beginning or a new standard of humanizing us in this new age.”

Best known for his figurative paintings, Singleton’s new works are directly inspired by archival family footage, including snapshots and home videos provided by the artist’s relatives, as well as representations of childhood recollections and memories that the artist refers to as “visual storytelling.” This process of research revealed truths not only about Singleton and his family, but also broader narratives about the landscape of American history as the exhibition maps a journey from the Jim Crow-era South to contemporary Los Angeles and Seattle.

Highlights include Elliyoun (2023), a panoramic triptych inspired by a family holiday photograph that celebrates multi-generational bonds and togetherness. Named for his great-great-grandmother Elliyoun Pulley, the work originated as a black-and-white 1940’s snapshot of the family in Arkansas that Singleton interprets in color. Dee Dee (2023) is a portrait of Singleton’s serenely smiling mother who seems to float in a Matisse-inspired luminous blue.

The diptych Man’s Soul Turning into a Rock (2023), featuring a cobalt blue figure at the center, is inspired by the parable of Lot’s Wife that Singleton’s grandparents would tell him in his youth. Blue Angels (2023) is based on a 1997 family snapshot taken at an air show in Tacoma, with kids sitting on the hood of a car, waiting for the excitement to begin.

Singleton’s video War Horn (2023) is an eight-minute montage of home movies and found footage, including family videos of children at a playground, birthday parties and riding a hobby horse; snippets of interviews and performances by James Baldwin, Octavia Butler, Jimi Hendrix and Nina Simone; anime and video games; and choir and voguing performances. The video is unified with interludes of calm flowing water and underwater imagery.