New Hampshire-based artist George Condo's latest exhibit 'George Condo: Mental States' is a mid-career retrospective that serves as a "conceptual survey" of his last 30 years of work.
Condo, perhaps best known for his work on the album and inside cover of Kanye West's 'My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy,' has been a considered one of the most skilled contemporary visual artist's since the early 1980s. This was also the time when his work began gaining acclaim due to its unique styles.
'George Condo: Mental States' focuses on many of Condo's portraits of characters he created, each illustrating someone going through a difficult mental breakdown.
'George Condo: Mental States' just finished a run at the New Museum NYC and will next be exhibited at the Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen in Rotterdam from June 25th to September 25th, 2011.
Demented Portraiture
New Retrospective 'George Condo: Mental States' Highlights Odd Portraits
Trend Themes
1. Conceptual Portraiture - Developing new portraiture techniques that focus on unique styles and conceptual exploration to create original artworks.
2. Mental Health Art - Creating art that explores mental illness and mental health to raise awareness and understanding through visual art.
3. Retrospective Exhibits - Organizing exhibits that showcase an artist's entire career and artistic development as a way to contextualize their work and gain a deeper understanding of their vision.
Industry Implications
1. Contemporary Art - Exploring new visual art techniques and styles that push the boundaries of traditional art mediums and create new forms.
2. Mental Health Advocacy - Developing new outreach programs that communicate the importance of mental health and create a dialogue around the subject through visual art installations.
3. Museum Curation - Creating exhibitions that showcase the best of contemporary art and contextualize an artist's career and artistic evolution to educate and entertain museum visitors.