Kanye West’s never-before-seen portfolio of artworks from his youth were revealed to viewers of PBS’ Antiques Roadshow last Monday.
During the previous episode, the husband of West’s first cousin showed off the collection of drawings done by the rapper when he was just 17 years old. The artworks displayed his creative prowess from a young age, aside from his talent in rapping and making music.
Art specialist Laura Woolley was impressed with the pieces as she examined them on camera. “I think these pieces demonstrate an extraordinary facility as an artist, and I selected this grouping because it shows the different mediums he was working in,” she said.
She spotlighted four unique pieces made by West to illustrate his skills of handling various mediums. West appeared to have worked with graphite, gouache and scratchboard, based on the pieces.
According to Woolley, the pieces could potentially make anywhere from US$16,000 to US$23,000 at an auction.
West was only four when he studied art at the Hyde Park Academy. He also attended the Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago State University, Polaris Charter Academy in Chicago and Nanjing University in China. The rapper was honored with a doctorate from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago back in May 2015, per the BBC.