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Iowa artist b. Robert Moore's work displayed in Black History Month presentation at Brooklyn Museum

Des Moines-based artist b. Robert Moore speaks to a crowd at the opening of his “In Loving Memory” exhibition at the Des Moines Art Center June 21, 2024.
Madeleine Charis King
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Iowa Public Radio
Des Moines-based artist b. Robert Moore speaks to a crowd at the opening of his “In Loving Memory” exhibition at the Des Moines Art Center on June 21, 2024.

Des Moines-based artist b. Robert Moore will have his piece "Lost and Found" displayed at the Brooklyn Museum in New York City throughout February.

The month-long presentation celebrates the fifth anniversary of a partnership between New York-based clothing brand Kith and the art museum for the brand's Black History Month Artist Series.

Moore has worked with Kith since he was part of the brand's inaugural Artist Series class five years ago. His work has been featured in museums and exhibits across the country, including at the Des Moines Art Center last summer, but he says this presentation will mark his first time showcasing a piece from his recent "Out the Mud" collection in New York City.

b. Robert Moore's piece, "Lost and Found" will be on display at the Brooklyn Museum in New York City throughout the month of February. It depicts "two brothers, or what may appear to be brothers — or friends, at the very least — coming out of the mud in a military sense. One looks confused and lost, and the other one looks really focused. And that plays into a duality that I feel throughout the journey of life — being lost and then found," the artist said.
Contributed
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b. Robert Moore
b. Robert Moore's piece, "Lost and Found" will be on display at the Brooklyn Museum in New York City throughout the month of February. It depicts "two brothers, or what may appear to be brothers — or friends, at the very least — coming out of the mud in a military sense. One looks confused and lost, and the other one looks really focused. And that plays into a duality that I feel throughout the journey of life — being lost and then found," the artist said.

The collection takes inspiration from the phrase, "Get it out the mud," which describes working your way out of an adverse situation with little to no help. Moore says it speaks to the experience of many Black Americans.

"It's the resiliency of us coming and being born into these challenging circumstances and environments — almost like we're born in the mud — and having to find our way of out the mud and fight our way out of those situations or environments," he said.

The Brooklyn Museum is the largest institution to feature Moore's work to date. He selected "Lost and Found" for the presentation to highlight his growth and artistic evolution since his first collaboration with Kith.

"My work and my mastery of my craft has evolved in the last five years," he said. "It's drastically different from the work that I had exhibited the first year, and it really plays into the theme of the exhibit."

The presentation opens Feb. 1 on the first floor of the Martha A. and Robert S. Rubin Pavilion. It's free and open to the public.

Note: A previous version of this story referred to the artist showcase at the Brooklyn Museum as an exhibit. This has been changed to reflect that the showcase is a Kith presentation at the Brooklyn Museum.

Josie Fischels is IPR's Arts & Culture Reporter, with expertise in performance art, visual art and Iowa Life. She's covered local and statewide arts, news and lifestyle features for The Daily Iowan, The Denver Post, NPR and currently for IPR. Fischels is a University of Iowa graduate.