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61 x 53cm, Edition of 40, Screenprint
Medium: Screenprint
Edition size: 40
Year: 1998
Size: H 61cm x W 53cm
Signed: Yes
Format: Signed Print
Last Auction: January 2024
Julian Opie’s Gary, Popstar is a print from 1998 made from a hand-cut stencil based on a photograph that the artist altered on a computer. This print is composed of lines and blocks of colour exclusively in black and white creating an extremely pared-back image. The sitter is depicted with buttons as eyes, two dots for nostrils, a mouth suggested by a line and eyebrows that are two clean ‘brushstrokes’.
Gary, Popstar is indicative of the way in which Opie likes to investigate both visual and verbal labels in his work, creating an extremely simplified visual language that appears as a series of signs. This print, along with many other portraits in the artist’s oeuvre, is titled with the sitters first name and occupation, emphasising the way that Opie sought to use as little information as possible to create a distinctly recognisable portrait. Opie’s portraits like this reveal the dehumanising effects of extreme digital simplification due to the sitter’s blank expression.
Despite the graphic reduction of Gary, Popstar, the individuality and likeness of the sitter is immediately apparent. With these portraits, Opie explores the idea that every person is unique in their defining features, even when reduced to a system of simplified signs and shapes.
Julian Opie, born in 1958, dances through the contemporary art scene with a distinctive digital allure. A trailblazer of the 1980s New British Sculpture movement, Opie's work is a highly stylised blend of Pop Art and minimalism which navigates the intersection of technology and visual expression. From his early experiments with computer-generated art to his iconic portraits and animated installations, Opie's work exudes a captivating simplicity. His signature style, marked by bold lines and reduced forms, is internationally recognisable and has made him a key player in British contemporary art.