Kerry James Marshall's retrospective 'The Histories' opens at the Royal Academy of Arts in London, featuring over 80 works spanning his career. The exhibition, co-curated by Mark Godfrey and Adrian Locke, includes early pieces like 'A Portrait of the Artist as a Shadow of His Former Self' (1980) and recent paintings exploring African history and the transatlantic slave trade. After London, the show travels to Kunsthaus Zürich and the Musée d'Art Moderne in Paris, timed to Marshall's 70th birthday.
The exhibition matters because it is Marshall's largest European show to date, highlighting his unique integration of art history, African American identity, and political commentary. By placing his work in the RA's main galleries, the retrospective underscores Marshall's influence on contemporary painting and his role in expanding narratives around race, representation, and the academy. It also continues the RA's tradition of spotlighting major living artists, affirming Marshall's status as a pivotal figure in art history.