Media: acrylic on canvas plywood
Dimensions: 100 x 162 x 5cm
Price: £4600.00

Another one of Axel Bottenberg's iconic pastiche artworks, 'Jules' is a take on Jean-Antoine Watteau’s "Pierrot, dit autrefois Gilles" - an odd baroque masterpiece. The loneliness of the central Pierrot character is accentuated by the isolation within an empty plywood panel, and taken over by Bottenberg’s self-portrait in Ronald McDonald make up. Although Bottenberg never trained as a painter, his skill and attention to detail here is evident. 'Jules' has been carefully engineered, with a combination of plywood and painted canvas which has been inset into the wood. The plywood backdrop makes the central figure stand strong in the foreground, and the darkness in the grain of the wood has serendipitously become part of the artwork - a reflection of Bottenberg's spontaneous spirit. The title 'Jules' references Bottenberg's upbringing in Belgium, where the name was once used as an insult and form of humiliation by a family friend. A story that is personal to the artist, this aspect imbues the work with personality and humour, and a sense of mystery as we wonder the fate of this strange character. “It’s a properly crafted work of art – it’s got a lot of DIY in it” The inclusion of the Ronald McDonald clown face is a recurring theme within Bottenberg's work. This imagery is a product of Bottenberg's fascination with McDonald's as a cultural phenomenon, and its role in the rise of global capitalism and mass consumerism since the 1980s - the time in which he studied alongside the YBAs (Young British Artists) at the Royal College of Art. Studying in this environment inevitably had an impact on Bottenberg’s oeuvre, which is charged with irony and social commentary. Graduating in 1989 with a degree in printmaking, Bottenberg’s practice has blossomed into a unique and exciting body of work since then, tackling a variety of subject matter. 'Jules' contrasts the high art of Watteau with the low art of Ronald McDonald to create an unusual yet exciting artwork that would bring character to any space. A piece that is unsettling yet unapologetically kitsch – Bottenberg is renowned for provoking a shock factor in his oeuvre, whilst the pop culture references maintain a familiarity, ensuring they are accessible and endlessly entertaining to a wide audience. Any piece from Bottenberg's collection would make an exciting addition to any art collection, business space, or home.

Axel Bottenberg is a mixed media artist who works to create bright, compelling compositions which blur the boundaries of painting and sculpture. Born in 1961 in Darmstadt, Germany, Bottenberg studied Fine Art and Printmaking at the Canterbury College of Fine Art, and later Printmaking at the Royal College of Art (RCA) in London. Bottenberg is now based at Bankley Studios in Levenshulme, Manchester, and is renowned for challenging the sphere of contemporary art through his practice. Bottenberg's oeuvre is imbued with entertaining pop culture and art historical references, and his works often reject art tradition through juxtaposing high and low art iconographies. Bottenberg is heavily inspired by 1960s Pop Art and its resurgence in the 1990s, which he portrays through his own eclectic lens and bold colour palette. Bottenberg's researched approach gives scope for sardonic appraisals within a varied, eccentric body of work. Any piece from Axel Bottenberg's oeuvre would be a valuable and compelling asset to any contemporary art collection, business space or home.

Other images of Jules by Axel Bottenberg