An exhibition at the Drawing Center is highlighting the provocative and multifaceted work of the late artist Pope.L, who passed away in 2023. Known for his challenging performances—often involving physically demanding and unconventional acts such as crawling across urban streets—Pope.L also engaged deeply with drawing and text-based art, which form the core of this comprehensive survey.

The show opens with selections from Pope.L’s long-running “Skin Set,” a series of text drawings that combine fragmented, often absurd statements about race with a visually rough, smeared aesthetic. Some of these pieces use unconventional materials like ketchup and correction fluid, reinforcing the raw and confrontational tone of the work. Examples include phrases such as “red people have no reservations” and “white people are prawns at sunset,” which blur humor and discomfort while probing issues of racial identity and social tension.

In addition to these text-based works, the exhibition features text paintings and an installation in the central gallery space. Visitors can also view various videos and sketches on the lower level, among them “Pop Tart Frieze” (1998), a lengthy drawing composed on 58 toaster pastries, which draws attention to the artist’s inventive use of everyday materials.

Perhaps most striking are the “Failure Drawings” displayed in a back room. These works represent Pope.L’s commitment to drawing as an almost daily ritual, created on a wide range of surfaces including envelopes, paper towels, fast-food wrappers, and medication packaging. The drawings often depict landscapes, worms, and abstract holes, rendered in a style that feels simultaneously chaotic and intimate. The choice of materials adds a layer of meaning, evoking discarded detritus while blurring boundaries between art and refuse.

Pope.L’s creative approach encompassed both humor and discomfort, using his practice to explore the complexities of race, identity, and human vulnerability. His embrace of bodily fluids and unorthodox media underscored a vision of the artist as a “psychic sanitation worker,” confronting societal taboos and pushing artistic expression toward what some might view as the extreme or taboo. Through these works, the exhibition captures his persistent exploration of art’s capacity to challenge norms and provoke reflection.