Continuing on my bender of graffiti, Kenny Scharf plays right into this group of amazing talents. There are hundreds of these amazing artists. So the next time you pass graffiti on a wall somewhere, think of all the ideas that really go into these amazing statements!
As a child Scharf was fascinated by television and consumer culture. Sitting only inches from the television screen, young Scharf became obsessed with vibrant and
surreal imagery of cartoons and low budget sci-fi films. Optimism oozed from these dewy forms of popular culture, reflecting an era when the medium of television was still new and shiny.
While a young artist living in New York in the 1980s, Scharf and other artists of his generation were drawn to works originating from contexts outside gallery spaces.
Whether that was graffiti, or parties at the famous Club 57, Scharf sought to incorporate
his works within situations that anyone and everyone could relate to and more importantly,
experience. Like Warhol before him, Scharf became interested in merging the highbrow with the lowbrow, and began working towards ways of incorporating pop-culture into
his paintings. As a way to rebel against the highly academic work that was being shown at the time, Scharf’s work reflected an Eden filled with animated colors and fantastical
subjects ranging from the Flintstones and the Jetsons, to imaginary characters that could cast either gloom or euphoria onto the desired canvas.
House of Turquoise