‘Prints’: first show graphic works Mark Ryden in The Netherlands
From Saturday June 2 until Sunday June 17, 2018, Jaski Gallery organized the exhibition ‘Prints’ with graphic works from the famous American artist Mark Ryden. It was the first time that works from Ryden were showed in The Netherlands.
Mark Ryden, who lives in Portland (Oregon), received a BFA in 1987 from Art Center College of Design in Pasadena. Blending themes of pop culture with techniques reminiscent of the old masters, Ryden has created a singular style that blurs the traditional boundaries between high and low art. His vocabulary ranges from cryptic to cute, treading a fine line between nostalgic cliché and disturbing archetype.
His work first garnered attention in the 1990s when he ushered in a new genre of painting, “Pop Surrealism”, dragging a host of followers in his wake. His paintings have been exhibited in museums and galleries worldwide, including a career-spanning retrospective “Cámara de las maravillas” at The Centro de Arte Contemporáneo of Málaga, as well as an earlier retrospective “Wondertoonel” at the Frye Museum of Art in Seattle and Pasadena Museum of California Art.
Ryden was recently commissioned to create the set and costume design for a new production of Whipped Cream, put on by the American Ballet Theatre with choreography by Alexei Ratmansky. Whipped Cream is based on Schlagobers, a two-act ballet with libretto and score by Richard Strauss that was first performed at the Vienna State Opera in 1924.