
Rashid Johnson
The New Black Yoga, 2016

Established in 2013, Massif Central is a Brooklyn-based company that produces 100% silk scarves by …

Rashid Johnson’s practice is defined by its critical evocations and entangling of racial and cultural identity, African American history, and mysticism. Many of his early works took the form of conceptual photography, though Johnson eventually expanded his practice to include wall-based works that engage the legacy of painting, sculptural installation, and assemblage using manufactured materials like shea butter, books records, and incense. “The goal,” Johnson explains, “is for all of the materials to miscegenate into a new language, with me as its author.” Johnson also exercises a range of mark-making techniques—like scoring, scraping, engraving, and branding—using self-made tools.


Established in 2013, Massif Central is a Brooklyn-based company that produces 100% silk scarves by contemporary artists. Interested in the trajectory of traditional French silk scarf-making, Massif Central is named after the region in France where the artform originated.

Rashid Johnson’s practice is defined by its critical evocations and entangling of racial and cultural identity, African American history, and mysticism. Many of his early works took the form of conceptual photography, though Johnson eventually expanded his practice to include wall-based works that engage the legacy of painting, sculptural installation, and assemblage using manufactured materials like shea butter, books records, and incense. “The goal,” Johnson explains, “is for all of the materials to miscegenate into a new language, with me as its author.” Johnson also exercises a range of mark-making techniques—like scoring, scraping, engraving, and branding—using self-made tools.