The Masquerade
The performance we all agreed to
Everyone is wearing one. Few will admit it.
The Masquerade keeps the mask and the face underneath in the same frame. It is about the performance people learn to give the world and what remains behind it.
Companion work: The Masquerade and Clowned by Capitalism both deal with the face we present when the world demands a performance. One is about the mask we choose. The other is about the performance a system can force onto us.
This one-of-one framed work by Harlem artist Corey Wesley is part of Unapologetic Faces: The Cost of Being Seen. It is signed and documented with a certificate of authenticity.
24x36 wall art. Museum-quality matte paper, matted, in a black Ayous wood frame from renewable forests. Acrylite front protector rather than glass, so there is nothing to shatter. Ready to hang, hanging hardware included. No additional framing required. Signed on the front by Corey Wesley. Signed certificate of authenticity included.
Contact Carol Ward About This Piece
Corey Wesley
Harlem shaped his practice: the faces on the subway, in recovery rooms, and in the space between performance and collapse. He creates what remains when the face stops performing.
His proprietary mixed-media process combines writing, Photoshop, Illustrator, and modern technology, including AI-assisted tools. Over days or months, he refines symbolism, color, composition, facial structure, and emotional tone until each work carries his recognizable visual language.
The faces in these works are archetypes. They belong to everyone. And no one.
More Available Works
Each one of one. Once acquired, it does not return.
