Self-Portrait Piñata, 2002
![](https://studiomuseum.imgix.net/images/Self-Portrait-Pi%C3%B1ata.jpg?auto=format,compress&fit=max&w=4040)
- Artist
Dave McKenzie
- Title
Self-Portrait Piñata
- Date
2002
- Medium
Papier-mâché and crepe paper
- Credit line
The Studio Museum in Harlem; gift of the artist
- Object Number
2005.21
Dave McKenzie uses forms such as bobbleheads, Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade balloons, and piñatas to expand our understanding of self-portraiture. For McKenzie, the self-portrait is not just an exercise in making an image of oneself, but a look at what portraiture can turn the self into: an icon, a caricature, a celebrity, a collectible, or a public figure. Here, his image is transformed into a piñata, something meant to be destroyed. At first glance resembling a fun party activity, the work soon takes a sinister turn, becoming a portrait of simulated racial violence.
Self-Portrait Piñata, 2002
![](https://studiomuseum.imgix.net/images/Self-Portrait-Pi%C3%B1ata.jpg?auto=format,compress&fit=max&w=4040)
- Artist
Dave McKenzie
- Title
Self-Portrait Piñata
- Date
2002
- Medium
Papier-mâché and crepe paper
- Credit line
The Studio Museum in Harlem; gift of the artist
- Object Number
2005.21
Dave McKenzie uses forms such as bobbleheads, Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade balloons, and piñatas to expand our understanding of self-portraiture. For McKenzie, the self-portrait is not just an exercise in making an image of oneself, but a look at what portraiture can turn the self into: an icon, a caricature, a celebrity, a collectible, or a public figure. Here, his image is transformed into a piñata, something meant to be destroyed. At first glance resembling a fun party activity, the work soon takes a sinister turn, becoming a portrait of simulated racial violence.