Awol Erizku Is The Artist Behind Beyoncé’s Incredible Pregnancy Announcement Portrait

The Bronx-raised artist reportedly confirmed his involvement over text.

February 01, 2017

The news of Beyoncé's pregnancy spread far and wide on Wednesday, after the pop star posted a portrait to Instagram along with a caption explaining that she and Jay Z would soon be welcoming twins. The news sent the internet into a frenzy, but many wondered who was behind the photo, which shows a veiled Beyoncé cradling her stomach while surrounded by a wreath of flowers.

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The person behind the portrait is Los Angeles-based multimedia artist Awol Erizku. Erizku confirmed the news of his involvement over text, according to a source close to Miami’s Nina Johnson gallery, where Erizku had a show in 2016, Art News reports.

Erizku works in photography and conceptual art, and has recently focused on the way art and music intersect. At his I Was Going To Call It Your Name But You Didn’t Let Me art show at Nina Johnson gallery in December, Erizku created a mixtape to go along with his works, as he does for every one of his exhibitions. “Each and every one of these paintings are titled after a song that makes up the tracklist, checklist, and mixtape that we are hearing now,” Erizku told The FADER about the show.

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At a previous exhibition in 2012, Erizku collaborated with DJ Kitty Cash on a mix, which included a snippet of a Kerry James Marshall lecture about beauty in the museum and a chopped-and-pitched version of Beyoncé’s “Drunk In Love.”

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Awol Erizku Is The Artist Behind Beyoncé’s Incredible Pregnancy Announcement Portrait