Untitled (daybed 5)

An imagined society in which drop-in psychotherapy sessions are available free at charge functions as the point of departure for a series of furniture pieces by Rashid Johnson. Contrary to their typical function as objects of rest and repose, wooden day beds covered in zebra skin are installed on Persian rugs on their sides, revealing hidden scars and scratches etched into the black, lacquered surfaces of their backs. Or, they can be placed in an upright position, nevertheless arousing our suspicion about that which remains hidden.

The traces of abrasion of Untitled (daybed 5) hint at a darker subtext, in which the black frame is analogous to the hidden depths of the individual and collective psyches. A similar idea is explored in Untitled (Bronze Chair), a bronze chair covered with zebra fabric. Hot liquid wax must have run down its legs, forming long and fragile drips. In this series, Johnson references objects embedded in Western history and socio-political contexts, but sets them against materials with distinctly African associations. Merging multiple sources, the artist proposes new ways to envision cross-cultural dialogue and extend the space of encounter.