An exhibition currently running at National Portrait Gallery features Michael Jackson-inspired art, with Mark Ryden‘s cover for the 1991 record “Dangerous” prominently featured. But it’s not just the original painting: Ryden crafted an entirely new work, “The King of Pop,” to house the piece.
In the video above, Ryden says that Jackson appeared to him in a dream, suggesting a new frame needed for the work. “So I set to designing a better frame,” Ryden says. “I had to design something of great exuberance and magnitude that didn’t overwhelm my original painting. I wanted it to be detailed and beautiful but not distract from the art it surrounded. I tried to design the frame to echo the painting’s lines, shapes, and rhythms … ”
“Michael Jackson: On the Wall” runs until Oct. 21 at the space.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BkfdqWHF6Rw/?hl=en&taken-by=markryden
Jason Limon, whose striking paintings play with the macabre and typography, offers new acrylic works on panel next month in a show at Copro Gallery in Santa Monica. Kicking off on Aug. 10 and running through Aug. 31, "Signs of Life" is at once playful and riveting, in the artist’s knack for conveying perspective and depth.
