Source: @spotify / Spotify
A new art exhibition in collaboration with Spotify highlighted women in Hip-Hop including Cardi B, Megan Thee Stallionand GloRilla.
The huge contribution of women to Hip-Hop culture is undeniable, and a new art exhibition in New York showcased it. The Gold Standard is an exhibition of works of art by Manon Biernacki paying homage to the prominent female rappers of the era. Featured rappers are Megan Thee Stallion, Cardi B, GloRilla, Ice Spice, Latto, Doja Cat, the City Girls, Saweetie, Sexyy Red and Flo Milli. Their faces are depicted in an un-life-like manner in paintings imbued with Biernacki's Renaissance-inspired vision. An Instagram post from streaming platform Hip-Hop entity RapCaviar announced the exhibition earlier in July, proclaiming it highlights “the Golden Age of women in Hip-Hop.”
The Gold Standard hosted a one-day exhibition on Wednesday (July 31) at The Hole gallery space in New York City's Lower East Side neighborhood. Visitors to the free exhibition were greeted with a lavish table set for a feast as they entered, with mirrors hanging on the wall to their right emblazoned with the words 'Feelin' Myself' where they could take selfies. Each female rapper was represented with a rich painting of herself in the gallery, accompanied by a biography of her life and career.
The centerpiece of the exhibition was “The Cloud Room”, a separate gallery space covered in rich cloud-like decorations that resembled Michelangelo's famous Sistine Chapel artwork with a painting depicting all the artists sitting together at the back of the room. . Visitors could also take photos in this setting while sitting on chairs placed in front of this painting. They were also able to grab flyers with reprints of each artist's painting that contained a code on the back that when scanned, took them to that artist's Spotify playlist.
For Biernacki, having the opportunity to contribute to the art that includes The Gold Standard it is a realization of the interiority of passion. In a statement, the Malian-born artist who now lives in Vancouver, Canada, said: “As an artist with a rich cultural background, I am passionate about celebrating the origins and stories of diverse women artists. Projects like The Gold Standard series allow me to honor and elevate voices that resonate with my own experiences and heritage.”
