Home Nightlife Canteen Magazine draws the rock stars of the literary and art world.

Canteen Magazine draws the rock stars of the literary and art world.

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Photography by Reka Nyari. Arnold Lehman and Kehinde Wiley.

This past Thursday saw esteemed guests congregate at the home of Arnold and Pam Lehman, Brooklyn Museum‘s director to celebrate literary journal Canteen Mag’s annual gala. Of course what makes Can-teen (I think you will understand momentarily why I have hyphenated the words) is the myriad contexts that this kindred journal holds.

As dandy and aesthete/artist, Kehinde Wiley and honored recipient of Canteen’s honorary acknowledgement offered- ‘Canteen fosters many meanings- it exists as a vehicle for the aspirations of young children and teenagers to realize their literary and artistic potentials, it manifests itself as a reservoir for the long whole and it also exists as an elixir of nourishment, something one would hope to find, naturally in a canteen.’

As Mr Wiley spoke, all eyes were on his darling marvelous piece that must have been 20 by 10 against the wall of a gilded young boy sitting side saddle on the euphemistic warrior stallion (the image loaded with innuendo of empowerment, forward motion and noble contemplation of the scene ahead and of oneself). Reflected further Mr Wiley, to think given the context of my disjointed exposure to South LA as a young person and that one day my work would be championed at the Brooklyn Museum still boggles me.’

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Stephen Pierson and Arnold Lehman

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