In a twist of Stuart Semple’s nearly decade-long feud with Anish Kapoor, the British artist and activist has legally changed his name to, well, “Anish Kapoor.” To celebrate, he’s stamping his new identity on a new limited-edition print, titled “NOT A NICHE MAN.”
The name change is Semple’s latest jab at the original Kapoor for acquiring sole rights to Vantablack, an ultra-dark, light-absorbing pigment, as an artistic material. Though it has since lost its title as the “world’s darkest material,” this exclusivity deal remains highly controversial in the art world. Semple’s change, part performance art, part protest, confronts ideas of what he calls “color hoarding” – the commercial monopolization of colors, including Mattel’s Barbie pink, Tiffany blue and Cadbury purple.
Semple has fired back by launching his own ultra-saturated pigments over the last several years. While this has meant putting his painting practice on the back burner, his brand Culture Hustle has been met with wild success, releasing the most “glittery glitter,” “pinkest pink” and his own line of super-black paints. In creating the viral Black 4.0, which, like Vantablack, absorbs 99.96% of light, the artist confronts questions about artistic ownership and accessibility.
For those who have always wanted to get their hands on a “Kapoor,” Semple’s most recent drop is available now through November 4, 2024 for £154 GBP ($203 USD.) The print comes with a full-color copy of his legal name change document and a hand-painted Black 4.0 on archival giclée piece that reads, “I’m not a niche man. I’m Anish, man.”
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