Andrew Cotton

"The Frida", mixed media split portrait series

2020

Gold & Despair is my adaptation of Gustav Klimt’s masterpiece "The Woman In Gold", also known as The Mona Lisa of Austria. Having admired the symbolic art of Klimt since my working days as a fine art restorer at Vienna’s prestigious Conservation Institute (Bundesdenkmalamt) in the 1980’s, I conceived the idea to recreate the jewel of his gilded period with an interpretive lens on the looming darkness of the Holocaust and World War II. As a native of Austria, Salzburg, I have developed an appreciation for Klimt’s art, and Art Nouveau in general. For the last thirty years, I have lived in New York City and worked as a fine art restorer, conservator, and painter as well as in the healing arts. Klimt had executed The Woman in Gold in the span of four years (1903-1907). My own creative process during 2014-2017, reflects my diligent care and thoroughness in rendering the original painting. In 2014, I started with the preparation of the canvas using Klimt’s original size of 54 x 54 inches (167 x 167 cm). For gesso, I used the traditional method of rabbit skin glue and chalk. For the painting, I used oil paints and genuine 23.5 karat gold in various shades, as well as silver leaves, to magnify the brilliant sheen of Klimt’s gold...

This is my adaptation of Gustav Klimt’s "Judith and the Head of Holofernes.” Klimt’s painting depicts the biblical character of Judit...

THE SUNDAY STROLL - ADAPTED TO TODAY'S TIMES Carl Spitzweg, the painter of "The Sunday stroll," was a German genre painter representing the Biedermeier ...

In my appropriation of Henri Rousseau's painting "The Dream," I replaced his nude reclining on the couch with my sister Leanna. I envisioned her magically transported into a lush ju...

Following in the great wake of Warhol, two artists collaborated to immortalize the great David Bowie. One of a kind Mixed Media. Oil, enamel, egg tempera, Swarovski crystals, Stainless steel, Aluminum, Feathers, velvet on wood. Hand Made Frame. 3 month long creation process. About the collaborative artists: New York artists Serge Strosberg and David Mandel fuse the visual language of Flemish and German portraiture with fantasy jewelry and fabric design. Both artists present a very contemporary and unlikely mixture of works heavily inspired by their personal histories characterized by decadence and eccentricity of the NYC club...

Inspired by cinema, photography, music and literature, Monet has a natural connection and sense for the current society and his contemporaries. His signature conceptual assemblage of text texture and color exudes eccentricity and empowerment of its time, exemplifying the characters and personalities of its icons. Born in Montreal, Monet studied graphic design at Laval University while exploring other mediums in fine art. He worked in fashion and advertisement before he dedicated himself to be a full time artist. Monet explored various mediums such as mosaic, collage and acrylics. More recently, he turned to the portrait. But not just any kind of portrait: blending collage of old newspapers...

With the distinctive medium of post-it notes, Özmenoğlu re-contextualizes everyday objects from something ordinary to a beautiful work of art. The individualized behavior of each pos...

With the distinctive medium of post-it notes, Özmenoğlu re-contextualizes everyday objects from something ordinary to a beautiful work of art. The individualized behavior of each pos...