Lowbrow(artmovement)

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Lowbrow,orlowbrowart,[1]describesanundergroundvisualart
movementthataroseintheLosAngeles,California,areainthelate
1970s.Itisapopulistartmovementwithitsculturalrootsin
undergroundcomix,punkmusic,andhotrodculturesofthestreet.Itis
alsooftenknownbythenamepopsurrealism.Lowbrowartoftenhasa
senseofhumorsometimesthehumorisgleeful,sometimesimpish,
andsometimesitisasarcasticcomment.[2]
Mostlowbrowartworksarepaintings,buttherearealsotoys,digitalart,
andsculpture.

Contents
1 History
2 Originoftheterm"lowbrowart"
3 Lowbroworpopsurrealism
4 Lowbrowvs.fineart
5 Books
6 Magazines
7 Documentaries
8 Seealso
9 ArtGallery
10 References
11 Externallinks

Dragomirja:Damn,that'scold
bloodedbyIHCOYC.Lowbrowart
oftenreferencesthemesfromolder
popularculturelikecomicbooksand
junglegoddesses.

History
Someofthefirstartiststocreatewhatcametobeknownaslowbrowartwereundergroundcartoonistslike
RobertWilliamsandGaryPanter.EarlyshowswereinalternativegalleriesinNewYorkandLosAngelessuch
asPsychedelicSolutionsGalleryinGreenwichVillage,NewYorkCitywhichwasrunbyJacaeberKastor,La
LuzdeJesus[3]runbyBillyShire[4]and01galleryinHollywood,runbyJohnPochna.Themovementsteadily
grewfromitsbeginning,withhundredsofartistsadoptingthisstyle.Asthenumberofartistsgrew,sodidthe
numberofgalleriesshowingLowbrowMostlikelythefirstformalartgallerytotakelowbrowartseriously
wastheTheJulieRicoGallery(http://www.juliericogallery.com)inSantaMonicawiththeonemanshow
"LooneyVirtues",in1992byartistAnthonyAusgang.(http://ausgangart.com)TheBessCutlerGalleryalso
wentontoshowimportantartistsandhelpedexpandthekindofartthatwasclassifiedasLowbrow.The
lowbrowmagazineJuxtapoz[5]byRobertWilliams,firstpublishedin1994,hasbeenamainstayofwritingon
lowbrowartandhashelpeddirectandgrowthemovement.
Writershavenotedthattherearenowdistinctionstobedrawnbetweenhowlowbrowmanifestsitselfin
differentregionsandplaces.SomeseeadistinctU.S."westcoast"lowbrowstyle,whichismoreheavily
influencedbyundergroundcomixandhotrodcarculturethanelsewhere.Asthelowbrowstylehasspread
aroundtheworld,ithasbeenintermingledwiththetendenciesinthevisualartsofthoseplacesinwhichithas
establisheditself.Aslowbrowdevelops,theremaybeabranching(astherewaswithpreviousartmovements)
intodifferentstrandsandevenwholenewartmovements.

Originoftheterm"lowbrowart"

InanarticleintheFebruary2006issueofhismagazineJuxtapoz,RobertWilliamstookcreditfororiginating
theterm"lowbrowart."Hestatedthatin1979GilbertSheltonofthepublisherRipOffPressdecidedto
produceabookfeaturingWillams'paintings.Williamssaidhedecidedtogivethebooktheselfdeprecating
title,"TheLowbrowArtofRobt.Williams,"[6]sincenoauthorizedartinstitutionwouldrecognizehistypeof
art."Lowbrow"wasthususedbyWilliamsinoppositionto"highbrow."Hesaidthenamethenstuck,even
thoughhefeelsitisinappropriate.Williamsreferstothemovementas"cartoontaintedabstractsurrealism[7]."
Lately,Williamshasbegunreferringtohisownworkas"ConceptualRealism.[8]"

Lowbroworpopsurrealism
Lowbrowisalsocommonlyreferredtoaspopsurrealism.Theterm"popsurrealism"wascoinedbyThe
AldrichContemporaryArtMuseumforits1998exhibitofthesamename.[9]Theexhibitfeaturedworkbyover
seventyartists,includingGregoryCrewdson,MarikoMori,AshleyBickerton,ArtSpiegelman,TonyOursler,
andCindySherman,andwasmemorializedinthe1999bookofthesamename.[10]Reviewingtheexhibition
forArtForum,StevenHenryMadoffwrote:"Themutantsensibilityatworkinthisdroll,smartlycurated
exhibitionproposesthemarriageofSurrealism'sdreamladenfetishforthebodyeroticizedandgrotesqueand
Popart'scelebrationoftheshallower,corrosivelybrightworldgivenoverthepackagedgood."[11]TheNew
YorkTimessaidoftheexhibit"atfirst,Surrealismandpopularculturewouldseemtobeoilandwater.
Surrealismminesdreamsandtheunconscious,whilepopularcultureisconcernedwithsurfaceand
commonplaces.Butinrecentyearstheyhavebeenbroughttogetherinexhibitionsconcernedwithprovingthat
HighandLowarerelated."[12]KirstenAnderson,whoeditedasecondbookcalledPopSurrealism,considers
lowbrowandpopsurrealismtoberelatedbutdistinctmovements.[13]However,MattDukesJordan,authorof
WeirdoDeluxe,viewsthetermsasinterchangeable.

Lowbrowvs.fineart
Museums,artcritics,mainstreamgalleries,etc.,havebeenuncertainastothestatusoflowbrowinrelationto
thefineartworld,andtodayithasbeenlargelyexcludedalthoughthishasnotstoppedsomecollectorsfrom
buyingtheworks.Someartcriticsdoubtthatlowbrowisa"legitimate"artmovement,andthereisthusvery
littlescholarlycriticalwritingaboutit.Thestandardargumentofcriticsisthatcriticalwritingarisesnaturally
fromwithinanartmovementfirst,andthenawidercircleofcriticsdrawsuponthiswritingtoinformtheirown
criticism.Thisapparentabsenceofinternalcriticalwritingmaybebecausemanylowbrowartistsbegantheir
careersinfieldsnotnormallyconsideredfineart,suchasillustration,tattooingandcomicbooks.Many
lowbrowartistsareselftaught,whichfurtheralienatesthemfromtheworldofmuseumcuratorsandart
schools.
Manyintheartworldhavedeeperdifficultieswithlowbrow'sfigurativefocus,itscultivationofnarrative,and
itsstrongvaluingoftechnicalskill.Alltheseaspectsofartweredeeplydisparagedintheartschoolsandby
curatorsandcriticsthroughoutthe1980sand90s.
However,anumberofartistswhostartedtheircareersbyshowinginlowbrowgallerieshavegoneontoshow
theirworkprimarilyinmainstreamfineartgalleries.JoeColeman,RayCaesar,MarkRyden(fromhis2007
'TreeShow'exhibition(http://www.laweekly.com/art+books/art/shootinglowaiminghigh/15924/?page=1)),
RobertWilliams,Ciou,ManuelOcampo,GeorganneDeenandtheClaytonBrothersareexamples.
Someoriginsoflowbrow'sapproachcanbetracedtoartmovementsoftheearly20thcentury,specificallythe
worksoftheDadaistsandtheleadingproponentsoftheAmericanRegionalismmovement(artistssuchas
ThomasHartBenton)inwhichsuchartmovementshavequestionedthedistinctionsbetweenhighandlowart,
fineartandfolkart,andpopularcultureandhighartculture.Insomesenselowbrowartisaboutexploringand
critiquingthosedistinctions,anditthussharessimilaritieswiththepopartofthe1960sandearly70s.Onecan
alsonotethatjustasthelowbrowartistsplayintheblurred(orperhapsevaporated)boundariesbetweenhigh
andlowculture,othermore"mainstream"contemporaryartistsuseartisticstrategiessimilartothoseemployed

bylowbrowartists.Examplesinclude:LisaYuskavage,KennyScharf,TakashiMurakami,GregColson,Inka
Essenhigh,JimShaw,JohnCurrin,MikeKelley,NicolaVerlato,MarkBryan(artist)andtheSanFrancisco
basedMissionSchool,whichincludesBarryMcGee,MargaretKilgallen,DanPlasma,WolfinaSpacesuit.

Books
Thereareseveralbookswhichofferoverviewhistoriesoflowbrow,includingthefollowing:
BillyShire.(2011LaLuzdeJesus25.ISBN9780867197648.AcollectionofLaLuzdeJesusGallery
inHollywood,CAthathascarriedLowbrowartfor25years.
KirstenAnderson.(2005)PopSurrealism:TheRiseofUndergroundArt.ISBN0867196181
MattDukesJordan.(2005)WeirdoDeluxe:TheWildWorldofPopSurrealismandLowbrowArt.San
Francisco:ChronicleBooks.ISBN081184241XInadditiontoshowingsomeofthebestexamplesof
theworkof23lowbrow/popsurrealistartists,"WeirdoDeluxe"includesanintroduction,anextensive
illustratedtimelineof20thcenturypopularandfineartculturethathasshapedthismovement,plus
interviewswiththeartistsinwhichtheydiscussinfluencesontheirart.Thedetailedtimelineincludes
informationaboutshowsandeventsinPopSurreal/Lowbrowart,and,whencombinedwiththe
interviewsandtheintroduction,offersthefirstcomprehensivehistoryofthismovement,chartingitskey
moments,itsorigins,anditsrisetoworldwideinfluenceandpopularity.
AaronRoseandChristianStrike.(2004).BeautifulLosers:ContemporaryArtandStreetCulture.ISBN
1891024744
SherriCullison.(2002)Vicious,Delicious,andAmbitious:20thCenturyWomenArtists.ISBN07643
16346ThewomenofLowbrow.
PopSurrealismWhatAWonderfoolWorldISBN9788888493695/Dimension:1725cm/
Content:Illustrations,photos,text/Format:hardcover/Pages:91/Published:2010byDragoand
DorothyCircusGallery/Language:English/Italian
Therearealsobooksfocusingonindividuallowbrowartists,includingMarkRyden,RobertWilliams,Joe
Coleman,SHAG(JoshAgle),AnthonyAusgang,Niagara(artist),StacyLande,ToddSchorr,CamilleRose
Garcia,AlexPardeeandElizabethMcGrath.
Honerla,Elisabeth,2008,TheUpsetYoungContemporaryArt,publishedbyGestalten,Berlin,283pages,
ISBN9783899552218

Magazines
Juxtapozmagazineisasignificantlowbrowpublication,functioningasasortofjournalofthemovement.
RawVisionmagazine[14]coversoutsiderartandlowbrowart.Itcontainsfullcolorimagesandconcise
articlesonnonmainstreamartists.
HiFructosemagazine,[15]whichdebutedin2005,focusesonlowbrowart.
FornoMagazine[16]includeslowbrowartworksassociatedwithsexualthemes.
DangerousInkMagazine[17]isaUKlowbrowmagazine,exposingthemovementtotheBritish.
Beautiful/DecayMagazine[18]documentstheconvergenceoffineart,graffiti,design,fashion,music,and
othercontemporaryformsofart.
TokionisamagazinewithbothJapaneseandUSeditions.
Stirato[19]isanItalianlowbrowmagazine,featuringartistsfromaroundtheworld.
Pinstriping&KustomGraphicsMagazine[20]isaUKKustomArtandlifestylemagazine,featuring
artistsfromaroundtheworld.Lowbrow,Airbrushing,Pinstriping,Tiki,TattooBurlesqque,PInUpetc.

Documentaries
SeveralfilmshavebeenmadetodocumenttheLowbrowmovement,including:
NewBrow:ContemporaryUndergroundArt(2009)Dir.TanemDavidson(http://www.newbrowfilm.com/)

TheTreasuresofLongGoneJohn(http://www.thetreasuresoflonggonejohn.com)

Seealso
ChicagoImagists
Kitsch
Lowbrowpopsurrealismartists
Massurrealism
KustomKulture
Naiveart
Outsiderart
Dieselpunk
Stuckism

ArtGallery
1.LaluzdeJesus,LosAngeles,USA(http://laluzdejesus.com/)
2.BillyShireFineArtsGallery,Washington,USA(http://www.billyshirefinearts.com/)
3.LaFiambreraGallery,Madrid,Spain(http://lafiambrera.net/)

References
1.TheBirthofLowbrowArtAnswerdotCom(http://arthistory.about.com/od/arthistory101/a/lowbrow.htm)
2.TheLowbrowMovementArtHistoryBasicsonLowbrowca1994Present(http://arthistory.about.com/od/arthisto
ry101/a/lowbrow.htm)
3.LaLuzdeJesusGallery(http://www.laluzdejesus.com/)
4.BillyShireFineArtsGallery(http://www.billyshirefinearts.com/)
5.JuxtapozMagazine(http://www.juxtapoz.com)
6.BeinartOriginationofthetermLowbrowArt(http://beinart.org/info/essays/robertwilliams.php)
7.RobtWmsExplainsLowbrow(http://beinart.org/info/essays/robertwilliams.php)
8.[1](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9WxJ44T2tX0&feature=related)
9.[2](http://www.aldrichart.org/exhibitions/past.php)
10.[3](http://books.google.com/books/about/Pop_Surrealism.html?id=87EJAAAACAAJ)
11.[4](http://www.questia.com/library/1G121230382/popsurrealismexhibitataldrichmuseumofcontemporary)
12.[5](http://www.nytimes.com/1998/08/02/nyregion/artrecipeforagoodtimesurrealismandpopculture.html)
13.KristenAndersonofRoqLaRue(http://www.seattlest.com/archives/2005/11/02/seattlest_interview_kirsten_anderson
_founder_and_owner_of_roq_la_rue_gallery.php)
14.RawVision(http://www.rawvision.com/index.html),London.ISSN09551182(https://www.worldcat.org/search?fq=x
0:jrnl&q=n2:09551182)
15.HiFructoseMagazine(http://www.hifructose.com/),OCLC262433180(https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/262433180)
16.FornoMagazine(http://www.fornomagazine.com)
17.DangerousInkMagazine(http://www.dangerousink.co.uk),Glasgow.ISSN17540283(https://www.worldcat.org/sea
rch?fq=x0:jrnl&q=n2:17540283)
18.Beautiful/DecayMagazine(http://www.beautifuldecay.com/)
19.Stirato.net(http://stirato.net/)
20.Pinstriping&KustomGraphicsMagazine(http://www.pandkg.com)

Externallinks
'Juxtapoz'ArtandCultureMagazine(http://www.juxtapoz.com/)
InterviewwithKirstenAnderson,editorofPopSurrealism(http://www.seattlest.com/archives/2005/11/0
2/seattlest_interview_kirsten_anderson_founder_and_owner_of_roq_la_rue_gallery.php)
2005L.A.Weeklyarticleonlowbrow(http://www.markryden.com/press/laweekly1005.html)

"TheLowbrowArtSale"WeeklyprintsArticle,everyTuesdayOnSFWeekly.com(http://blogs.sfweekly.
com/shookdown/the_lowbrow_art_sale/)
'CreepMachine'undergroundartwebzine(http://www.creepmachine.com/)
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