Kim and Kayne
Written by Monica Arora
As American writer Edward Abbey wrote, “How could anything non-controversial be of intellectual interest to grown-ups?”
© kanye west | photo by sam kahn | courtesy of the artist and blum & poe, los angeles/new york/tokyo
It is actually impossible to separate controversy and the ‘Kim and Kayne’ couple.
Known for their provocative lifestyles and their larger than life public appearances, the latest news pertaining to Kanye Omari West, an American recording artist, songwriter, record producer, fashion designer, and entrepreneur is about his much talked about art installation that had been displayed on 26 and 27 August at Los Angeles Gallery Blum & Poe. The mixed media art installation has been described as “the sculptural milieu of semi-nude sleeping figures includes the likes of Taylor Swift, Kim Kardashian (an American reality television personality, actress, socialite, businesswoman and model and the artist’s wife), Donald Trump, George W. Bush, Rihanna, Bill Cosby, and the artist, Kayne West himself.”
© kanye west | photo by sam kahn | courtesy of the artist and blum & poe, los angeles/new york/tokyo
Kayne West’s music video for the song ‘Famous’, which was released in June 2016, became instantly controversial and a polarized topic of discussion owing to its hot and contentious video featuring husband and wife, Kim and Kanye lying in bed surrounded by a group of naked celebrities. Reportedly, ‘Famous’ was “inspired” by Vincent Desiderio’s “Sleep,” which was based on Jackson Pollock’s ‘Mural’ painting.
Mr. Blum of Blum & Poe stated that he initially found the idea “whimsical” and added that “Mr. West wanted an art world unveiling…the piece took four months of animation modeling, 3-D scanning, stylist consulting, Instagram searches. The result was startlingly accurate. Each animatronic body was hand-sculpted down to the freckles and hair (human!), all applied by hand, piece-by-piece, and none more ghoulish than Mr. Cosby’s freckles or Mr. Trump’s fleshy behind.”
© kanye west | photo by sam kahn | courtesy of the artist and blum & poe, los angeles/new york/tokyo
So much buzz has been generated around this unusual and irreverent sculpture that it is being touted to be priced at a whopping four million dollars! Upon being queried about the multimillion price point, Mr. Blum laughed, and stated, “It is on sale — for the right buyer. When you tally the materials needed, labor and Mr. West’s name, the $4 million price tag doesn’t seem so outlandish. I would project a figure about that,” he added smugly.
“To be honest, we did it for the sake of doing it,” Mr. Blum continued. “The show and project were not done with price or sale in mind. But I would act upon it as every other piece of art I handle.”
The figures depicted in the sculpture are so lifelike, “they even breathe, chests rising and falling as if deep in REM sleep.” Aaron Axelrod, a Los Angeles artist associated for a 3-D mapping Frank Lloyd Wright’s Hollyhock House added, “I did the math in my head, and it took $500,000 to a million just to make it. This caught me off guard. It’s one of the coolest pieces I’ve ever seen, which is kind of annoying because it’s Kanye West.”
Mr. Axelrod believes that the biggest coup was “breathing life into the sculptures, since this was made for the music video, no one would have been able to tell [how] those sculptures were moving. Which means he’s going above and beyond.” “Art is really just an idea,” Mr. Axelrod concluded. “It’s follow through and direction. What makes a great artist nowadays is being able to put together a team. And he was willing to give up money to put his ideas to life.”
Image courtesy Getty Images
Meanwhile, on the opening night, Kim Kardashian attended her husband’s Famous art exhibit, donning a platinum blonde wig, and busy clicking pictures of her husband’s nude sculpture along with other celebrities, accompanied by model-sister Kendall Jenner, causing a flutter by their entry.
Kim posed with the creator of the installation; Image courtesy Getty Images
Reference Links
http://www.popsugar.com/celebrity/Kim-Kardashian-Visits-Kanye-West-Famous-Art-Exhibit-2016-42291929?stream_view=1#photo-42291943
http://www.designboom.com/art/kanye-west-famous-nude-celebrity-sculptures-exhibit-blum-and-poe-gallery-los-angeles-09-01-2016/
http://www.nydailynews.com/entertainment/music/kanye-famous-naked-wax-exhibit-hoping-sell-4-million-article-1.2774451
http://www.goodreads.com/quotes/tag/controversy