Umar Rashid "En Garde / On God" Blum & Poe Exhibition

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En Garde / On God, Installation view, Los Angeles, 2021

Courtesy Of The Artist And Blum & Poe. Photo: Josh Schaedel

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Umar Rashid, The Battle of Coachella Part 1. Day 1. The Triumvirate turn against their former comrades in a daring daylight raid, goaded on by misinformation with new conversion therapists sent from a crippled mission control. Mariachis play a dirge at the end., 2021

Courtesy Of The Artist And Blum & Poe. Photo: Josh Schaedel

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Umar Rashid, The siege of Santa Monica from the bay. Viewing party in the Palisades Or, when Megatron shows up, expect the worst. The little red corvette battle ship of the Imperial Spanish Navy, sails into Santa Monica Bay and destroys the statue of Calafia and a few other monuments. Meanwhile, the Company Cazador is planning to assault via land from the Palisades but are interrupted by a rowdy outing and an assassination attempt. Black and White Jesus shielded their eyes in the Trans-Am., 2021

Courtesy Of The Artist And Blum & Poe. Photo: Josh Schaedel

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Umar Rashid, Deus in absentia. Or, in the absence of god, just wait for some mediocre, human being to come along and fuck things up. The shepherd of colonizers and the lord of the conquered., 2021

Courtesy Of The Artist And Blum & Poe. Photo: Josh Schaedel

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Umar Rashid, Devastating Armaments Resistance Enterprise. Or, if we must die, let us be drunk and high. When one has given up and defeat is certain, it appears that the numbing of the senses can be a balm of sorts. It is not recommended however. War is wealth. Is entropy an enterprise?, 2021

Courtesy Of The Artist And Blum & Poe. Photo: Josh Schaedel

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Umar Rashid, Eat Shit and die. A prison for the grossly unjust, forced into a perpetual cycle of death and rebirth. A rare Frenglish punishment. Picture the sun god rolling., 2021

Courtesy Of The Artist And Blum & Poe. Photo: Josh Schaedel

1,761 Hypes

Umar Rashid is a painter and storyteller who draws from disparate cultures to create alternative historical narratives. Also known by his alias Frohawk Two Feathers, Rashid presents his first solo exhibition with Los Angeles’ Blum & Poe, titled “En Garde / On God.”

Rashid recounts the fictitious history of the Frenglish Empire (1648-1880) through a series of large-scale paintings and sculptures. The work is replete with iconography — from art historical references, such as Renaissance portraiture and Persian Miniatures; visual lexicon from the canons of colonialism, to modern-day hip-hop of the 1980s and ’90s. Although each piece carries a lighthearted charm that draws you in, the complex narratives begin to complicate what is actually true and false in much of the histories that are taught in the world.

This is where the artist’s mastery takes place. Understanding the role humor can play in representing history for a new generation eager to overcome the mistakes of the past. Rashid’s penchant for storytelling was imbued in him as he studied cinema and photography at Southern Illinois University. “En Garde / On God” will be on view at Blum & Poe until December 18.

Also on view, witness Cao Fei’s groundbreaking films at Sprüth Magers LA.

Blum & Poe
2727 S La Cienega Blvd,
Los Angeles, CA 90034

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