Mark Kostabi
(Los Angeles, California, 1960 - )
Low Tech
1985
Ink on paper
9 1/8 x 12 in. (23.1 x 30.5 cm)
Collection of the Akron Art Museum
Gift of The Dorothy and Herbert Vogel Collection: Fifty Works for Fifty States, a National Gift program of Contemporary Art, is announced by the National Gallery of Art, the National Endowment for the Arts, and the Institute of Museum and Library Services.
2009.30.18
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Kostabi moved to New York in 1982 and was a leading figure of the East Village art scene by 1984. During that time he honed a provocative media persona by publishing self-interviews that commented on the commodification of contemporary art. He developed a signature painting and drawing style consisting of simplified human forms that evoke modern sculpture and surrealist painting. In 1988, sparking controversy in the media, the artist founded Kostabi World, his large New York studio known for openly employing painting assistants and idea people. Though Kostabi took his cues from the ateliers of Old Master painters and Andy Warhol’s infamous Factory, Kostabi’s fame and commercial success stirred up new questions about authorship, authenticity, originality and art as commodity.