Kenny Scharf Paintings

Artist: Kenny Scharf Title: Unique Surfboard Size: 195.6 x 50.8 x 6.4 cm. (77 x 20 x 2 1/2 in.) Medium: Spray Paint on Surf Board Edition: Unique Original 1 of 12 Year: 2021 Notes: Signed and numbered 'Tim Bessell 1/12 Kenny Scharf' on the reverse. Kenny Scharf is a legendary American artist who was a pioneer in the iconic 1980s East Village street art scene in New York. Together with artists such as Keith Haring, Andy Warhol and Jean-Michel Basquiat, Scharf helped spearhead the aesthetics of the era, co-authoring arguably the most essential chapter in street art history by positioning it as an equal player on the contemporary art world’s main stage. Today, the Californian is widely recognised as one of the most important figures in the ‘Lowbrow Pop Surrealism’ art movement, which is characterised by abstract imagery merging with dreamy cartoon characters, and is rooted in comics, punk music, and graffiti and street culture. Like many other children growing up during Pop Art's cultural boom in the 1960s, Scharf was greatly impacted by images of popular and commercial culture that permeated and shaped American collective consciousness. But, unlike other kids, Scharf's interests went beyond clipping out photographs from magazines to stick on his bedroom wall. Instead, he found joy in finding expression on the streets, where, with a spray paint can in hand, he could share his unique, Day-Glo, psychedelic pictures with the public. In his works, Scharf employs a range of techniques, media and allusions to create hallucinatory compositions bursting with bright colours, bold patterns, and dreamlike metaphors, featuring a host of anthropomorphic creatures, extraterrestrial beings, and comic book motifs. A UNIQUE STATEMENT AGAINST MARINE POLLUTION In 2012, Scharf decided to take his practice one step further by working on a unique partnership with Parley – a group and platform raising awareness about the major threats towards our oceans, which are the most important ecosystem of our planet. As Scharf explained, ‘I am obsessed with plastic in our oceans and I jumped at the chance to do anything with other people that are also sharing that obsession.’ Parley’s Global Cleanup Network has a special focus on protecting the Yucatán Peninsula in Mexico where the group have been active since 2017, and where Scharf himself has spent numerous years. Scharf created a small group of only twelve individually painted...

Kenny Scharf Val Wong Worm, 2006 Oil, acrylic, silkscreen and rhinestones on paper Signed, dated and titled by the artist on the die-cut window on the back Frame Included: elegantly floated and framed in a museum quality white wood frame with a die-cut window to reveal the signature on the back of the artwork An impressive unique Kenny Scharf work on paper - with an equally riveting back story. This work was gifted directly by Kenny Scharf to the original owner, who is the collector who commissioned Scharf to make his famous Souped-Up, Decked-Out Coupe De Ville Cadillac Art Car which sold for about US $400,000 at Heritage Auctions in 2023. Measurements: Frame: 49.5 x 35 x 2 inches Artwork: 44 x 30 inches This work is accompanied by a letter of provenance stating, "This letter will serve to outline the provenance of the Kenny Scharf "Val Wong Worm" work on paper from 2006. In 2005, I and my two business partners in the firm Trackside Brothers, LLC commissioned Kenny Scharf to paint/customize a 1960 Cadillac for my personal collection. The car was essentially brand new having only 5,300 miles at the time of commissioning. Knowing that the year and model were on of Kenny's favorites, he was keen on the undertaking but somewhat apprehensive due to the pristine condition of the car and came to our studio in Delray Beach, Florida to undertake the project. In advance Kenny had shipped three boxes of "Object d'art" to use in the creation what would become "Astral Uber Cumulo Nimbus Atlantian Express." I was honored to be granted the role of Kenny's assistant for the four week "transformation." Kenny stated at the time that I was the only collector to act as his assistant on any of his art projects. In order to properly document the creative process from start to finish we hired Five Star Productions of Boca Raton, Florida to shoot the project resulting in the documentary "Kenny and the Cadillac." Upon its completion we "launched" the car into the world at Art Basel Miami in 2006. We had the launch party at the Raleigh hotel with the Caddy on a rotating turntable by the pool. There were hundreds of gallery/museum directors at the event which garnered significant press. Kenny and his friends conducted a "Cave Man" performance piece dancing and singing around the car, all of which was filmed for the documentary. In appreciation for the time, effort and expense of the project, documentary and launch party, Kenny gifted each of us a work on paper from his "Worm" series of 2006. My gift...