Icons in Art

As early as the 4th-century artists have been painting icons. Starting with religious icons in art, and then royal, until the modern era where tributes range over hundreds of years of symbolic figures. From Peter and Paul to Kate Moss and Louis Armstrong, it is human nature to deify those who inspire us. Eden Gallery’s multi-faceted artists dedicate some of their works to the icons of the last century. Explore the Icons Collection here.

Dorit Levinstein

Dorit Levinstein paints with passion, love, and creativity, embodying her full artistic spirit in everything she does. Bringing her unique palette of brightly contrasting patterns to her sculptures allows her to explore the world of icons and celebrities through a one-of-a-kind eye.

Dorit Levinstein captures Frida Kahlo’s regality in her interpretation. Bringing the self-portrait painting to 3-dimensional life in her signature style, the artist captivates Kahlo while expressing her own colorful senses. Also a convention-bending woman, Levinstein is a renegade artist, much like Kahlo. Creating her own narrative through twisting and bizarre shapes, covered in ecstatic patterns, that when mixed together, become beautiful, recognizable sculptures. Levinstein recreates the spirit of Frida Kahlo while staying true to her own unique approach. 
 

“We’ve become collectively addicted to the gossip surrounding our modern icons, but pay no real interest in understanding their intimate dimensions.” – Dorit Levinstein
 

The inspirational and captivating singer-songwriter Amy Winehouse was best known for her deep and expressive vocals, as well as her quintessential ’60s inspired appearance. One of Dorit Levinstein’s greatest muses, Winehouse, remains true to her iconic look with an instantly recognizable beehive hairdo and the thick black cat-eye liner, all without compromising Levinstein’s own colorful signature. This sculpture is an excellent blend of two extraordinary artists. Levinstein’s unique take brings another dimension of life to the already lively image of the iconic musician.

See Dorit Levinstein’s magical world of iconic figures here.

SN

The butterfly artist SN has an eye for beauty and fame. He uses well-known faces in his fantasy artworks to create a likeness of the fashion icons Kate Moss and Kendall Jenner. Reimagining these icons as angels or warriors, he creates an alluring image using both his muses of fashion and nature.

One of the greatest fashion icons in history Kate Moss has walked the runway for top designers; she has fronted campaigns for high-end brands; she has designed her own fashion collections, and when it comes to high fashion, the woman has done it all. She is the style icon of her generation. She is also one of the great muses of SN who based an entire collection on the ideals of beauty and high fashion in one of his recent collections. SN portrays the young Kate Moss as an ethereal-looking superhero in Kate Superhero Fashion, she is the perfect representation of a hero for fashion and beauty.
 

Kendall Jenner is a force to be reckoned with in the fashion industry. With ten years under her belt at only 24, she has walked every runway and has more than 120 million followers on Instagram! This icon serves as a muse in SN’s Kendall Angel Dust, the model is celebrated and revered with angel wings and a soft expression embodying beauty and harmony.

SN expresses his artistic eye for composition in his magical mixed media paintings to create scenes from a fantasy world. See his full collection of butterfly beauties here.

Alec Monopoly

The famed international phenomenon, Alec Monopoly, has become quite the icon himself. Noted for his top hat, mask, and sparkling chains, Monopoly has become a Simpsons character, an Art Basel luminary, and an Instagram hotshot. When he is not depicting his usual mod of characters, Monopoly shows off his skills portrait artist—having painted some of the most iconic celebrities on a massive scale on multi-storied murals and on canvases.

Amid references that make up current pop-culture, Tupac Shakur remains one of the most iconic figures in hip-hop history. The ‘California Love’ singer made leaps and bounds in the music industry up until his death. Monopoly venerates this musical icon in his signature graffiti style. See Hermes Tupac here.
 

Mike Tyson is the boxing world heavyweight champion and, at only 20-years-old won the record as the youngest boxer to ever win a heavyweight title. A title that he still holds today. Alec Monopoly paints the young Mike Tyson in action in Mike Tyson Swinging Punch. He adds movement to the canvas with the splattering paints while framing the muscular figure of the most iconic fighter in history.

Explore Alec Monopoly’s exciting collection of mixed media paintings exclusively at Eden Gallery here.

Angelo Accardi

Angelo Accardi combines inspirations from artists over the centuries in his surreal artworks. He combines classical art with contemporary references to creates the perfect composition.

The passionate, patriotic, feminist painter, inspired by heartache as much as by flowers and color, has painted several nations and inspired thousands of artists globally. Considered one of Mexicos’ most valued treasures, Frida Kahlo is now one of the most celebrated female painters in history. Angelo Accardi pays his homage to this icon in his one-of-a-kind tapestry collection. Using fire, he paints Kahlo’s well-known face with her signature flowered headdress and his signature blue ostrich. 
 

Famed for his role in Terminator and Conan the Barbarian as much as for the two terms he served as the Governor for California, Arnold Schwarzenegger is an American icon. In Accardi’s Dear Arnold, a young Schwarzenegger lounges on the couch with framed portraits of army heroes behind him and the artistic image, a can of Campbell’s tomato soup, on the floor in front of him. Finally, posing at the foot of the couch is one of Accardi’s ostriches. Bringing together icons of government, film, art, and battle, Accardi places his ostrich amongst the elite. Perhaps he is alluding to the bright future that this young pink ostrich may have, or maybe he is bringing a new perspective to the icons that the audience has not yet seen.

Check out Angelo Accardi’s ‘misplaced’ characters and familiar icons here!

Gumm

The contemporary artist Gumm plays with inspirations from pop culture and design in his original artworks. Beginning his career in the framework of photography, the artist has an eye for composition and detail.

One foggy day in Venice, where Gumm lives, the artist was taking a stroll through the industrial area. He came across some old crushed cans and immediately was mesmerized by the folds in the metal and the light bouncing off the shiny surfaces. He inspected the faded colors and the many textures and then took the can home with him, which inspired a full collection. A collection that led him to reenvision some of his favorite, iconic images. 

One of the most iconic faces in cinematic history is that of the blonde bombshell Marilyn Monroe. First immortalized by the pop artist Andy Warhol in his colorful silkscreen prints, Monroes face is one of the most recognizable around the world. Gumm pays homage to both Warhol and Monroe in his rendition of the prints with Marilyn Can.
 

Check out Gumm’s full collection of wall sculptures in Eden Gallery’s online shop here!

Clem$

Clem$ is a French artist whose obsession with contemporary culture, popular characters, and vivid colors are the drive behind the work which he creates. Taking inspirations from his earlier career in electronic music, his current art form is indicative of the zany, fast-paced, and colorful music he used to make.
 

For over 91 years, Mickey Mouse has been bringing smiles to millions of faces around the globe. Possibly the most illustrated iconic character in history, this little mouse has a major international presence. In Mickey Chanel, the characters smiling face draws the viewer in and his hands’ point in the direction that he wants your eyes to go. Replacing Mickey’s ears are two multicolored Chanel logos. Clem$ has removed the most iconic detail in Mickey’s image and has replaced it with another equally iconic image. Commenting on our values as to whether they are cartoons or fashion, it is all interchangeable as long as it draws attention. 

Fascinated by pop and street art, Clem$ deconstructs images from contemporary culture and adds his eccentric twist. Many of his paintings incorporate cartoons and celebrities as gangsters, bodybuilders, or fashionistas. He brings together the elements of modern culture that we romanticize and idolize, making the viewer question where we, as an audience, hold our values. 

In Gangsta Mickey, our favorite mouse covers part of his face with a NY hat while toting around a bag of $ and a cartoonish gun. Since the 1920’s gangsters have been capturing the hearts of worldwide audiences, for some reason, we cannot get enough of Vito Corleone or Tony Soprano. Through his artwork, Clem$ is commenting on this warped sense of glory that these gangsters and our glamourized view of them. 

Explore Clem$ collection of contemporary paintings in Eden Gallery’s Online Shop here!
 

Icons in Art

For hundreds of years artists have been immortalizing famous faces in figures through sculpture and paints, these figures revered or idolized as they have achieved success through their political fervor, their angelic voices, or acting capabilities. A person or character regarded as a representative worthy of admiration becomes forever immortalized in Eden Gallery’s Icons Collection, see it here!