Chris Ofili
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Chris Ofili

1968–Present

"I want people to look into the paintings as well as at the paintings--to pause, rewind, and to play them over and over."
--Chris Ofili

"For me… it's to the beat in music, because when the dots are made, there's constantly this tapping noise when they are being put on. That comes out of just being in the studio and listening to music. . . . If you listen to something, it goes into the part of your brain that deals with sight. . . . I'm trying to make paintings that make you hear them, rather than see them. So actually, you're looking at music [that will] teach your eyes to hear and your ears to see."
--Chris Ofili, 2000

"Their (Wu-Tang Clan's) music is so melancholic. It's the end of the century, they're just delivering this speech about how real everything is. The RZA (Prince Rakeem) is a master composer, he's so emotive. . . . The whole Wu-Tang thing is a laboratory, isn't it. It's a laboratory of hip-hop."
--Chris Ofili, 1998