Genius or kitsch? Controversial artist's exhibition opens
Published 19 May, 2008, 14:04
Some call him the Picasso of our time, others think his works are nothing but kitsch. American artist George Condo has opened his first personal exhibition in Moscow’s Gary Tatintsian Gallery.
Born in 1957, Condo is a successful artist, a man possessed by visions. He paints what he sees – the “antipodal beings” that dominate his imagination and which he believes to be real. His work is a range of portraits of non-existent people, but they come from external influences.
George Condo is more than just the creator of fantasy images. He is a real expert in art history, which adds new dimensions to his works. Condo offers contemporary treatment to art history, mixing a range of painterly styles, spanning the 18th to 20th centuries.
His pseudo-real world attracts many followers worldwide, including celebrity admirers, such as Ringo Starr, Leonardo DiCaprio and even Queen Elizabeth II. As well as private collections, his works are on display at galleries in New York, London, Paris and many other cities.
It took the Moscow’s gallery's owner, Gary Tatintsian, almost three years to organise this exhibition and he had no doubts that the king of artificial realism is worth displaying to the Russian public.
“Condo has the technology of consciousness so to say, which no modern artist in Russia has. His caricatures are based on intellect and total control, and also on the photographic analysis of his imagination,” he said.
However, there’ve been a lot of negative reviews of Condo's work.
So, is he a genius of modern art or just one of the numerous successors of the 20th century avant-gardists?
Moscow art lovers can make up their minds until July 15 at the Condo exhibition at the Gary Tatintsian Gallery.
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