Young Artists After Siamesas 1960.
The work, Young Artists After Siamesas 1960, was commissioned by the State Department in 2013 through its Art in Embassies program and completed by Wiley in 2015. The monumental painting depicts four Dominican figures against an elaborate floral background. Wiley based the composition in part on the work of Dominican artists Celeste Woss y Gil and Gilberto Hernández Ortega and worked with local art students in developing the piece.
The painting had been displayed at the embassy since 2015 as part of an exhibition intended to highlight cultural connections between the United States and the Dominican Republic. It measures more than 12 feet wide and nearly 9 feet high.
The removal was publicized by Leah Campos, the Trump-appointed U.S. ambassador to the Dominican Republic. In an Aug. 11 social-media post, Campos shared video of workers taking the painting down. The work was initially concealed behind a tarp bearing an American flag.
“In the Trump Administration and under my leadership we are turning away from globalist and woke ideologies,” Campos wrote, saying the embassy would instead embrace “American patriotism and the beauty of our great country.”
Erin Scavino, director of the State Department’s Art in Embassies program, subsequently criticized Wiley and the painting during an appearance on the Sean Spicer Show. Scavino said the embassy had a work that officials had “worked very hard to get taken down,” describing it as “very woke” and “aesthetically terrifying.”
The State Department has also cited controversial comments Wiley made about other works, as well as sexual-misconduct allegations against the artist, which Wiley has denied. A department official said the work of an artist associated with what the administration considers “violent and racist words and depictions” has no place in what it called the “America First State Department.” Officials have not identified anything specifically objectionable in Young Artists After Siamesas 1960 itself.
The department said it is consulting legal representatives to determine whether the painting can legally be sold. Because the work was commissioned with taxpayer funds, its potential sale could raise questions about the government’s authority to dispose of art acquired through the Art in Embassies program.
Wiley became internationally known after painting former President Barack Obama’s official portrait, unveiled at the Smithsonian’s National Portrait Gallery in 2018. His paintings are noted for placing contemporary Black subjects into poses and settings drawn from European art history, often surrounded by elaborate decorative patterns.
The dispute over the Santo Domingo painting comes as the State Department’s Art in Embassies program undergoes a broader ideological shift under the Trump administration. The program, established in 1963, has traditionally used American and international art as a form of cultural diplomacy in U.S. diplomatic facilities around the world.
The Wiley controversy has raised concerns among art-world observers that other works associated with previous administrations’ cultural priorities could also come under scrutiny. For now, however, the fate of Young Artists After Siamesas 1960 remains uncertain: the painting has been removed from public view, while the State Department determines whether it can be sold.
