Russell Young, FAME

About

FAME investigates the immortal stardom of those who defined their generation and propelled every generation since into the cultural landscape we inhabit today. The heroes and heroines of Young’s escapist and misspent youth are revitalised through his signature creation, diamond dust, an effervescent multi-faceted glass shimmering atop hand-pulled screen prints. FAME represents a pilgrimage to the beauty, creativity, glamour and possibility of a transformative golden era in 20th century culture.

In what could partly be perceived as a love letter to the much-fated American Dream, Young pays deferent attention to ‘blonde bombshell’ Marilyn Monroe, the ultimate sex symbol of the 1950s and early 1960s who was emblematic of the era’s changing attitudes towards sexuality. The King of rock ’n’ roll Elvis Presley, world heavyweight champion Muhammad Ali and First Lady Jackie Kennedy also feature to further highlight America’s commanding cultural influence at that time.

The ‘celebrification’ of the special relationship between the United States and Great Britain, which dominated the second half of the 20th century, is subtly made reference to through Young’s selection of British icons, all of whom had huge success on the other side of the pond. These include British music giants David Bowie and Mick Jagger and legend of the silver screen Elizabeth Taylor.

Alongside Young’s diamond dust paintings, FAME will debut a never-before-seen series of ‘text paintings’ that for the first time marry iconic imagery with the subject’s artistic output. These include Bob Dylan ‘Tangled Up in Blue’, Brigitte Bardot ‘Born to Be Wild’ and The Magnificent Seven’s hooves thundering into town to ‘All the Young Dudes’. Young’s decision to use song titles, lyrics and quotes to compliment the protagonists adds a new language to the artist’s canon.

Encompassed at the centre of the exhibition, FAME will house a Marilyn Monroe-themed suite, and visitors to London’s New Bond Street will enjoy the spectacle of a dazzling projection of Monroe across Halcyon Gallery’s four-story façade.

Young’s artwork is coveted by museums, galleries and iconic institutions all over the world, and almost nobody else can boast such a uniquely eclectic and wide-ranging array of world-famous collectors. These include President Obama, Brad Pitt, Kanye West, David Bowie, Idris Elba, the Kardashians and Dame Elizabeth Taylor. The late Oscar winning actress insisted on visiting Young at his studio in California herself to watch him in the creative process.

Young’s path to A-List adored artist is unique and somewhat unconventional, yet entirely informs his work. He comes from humble beginnings. Born in 1959, Young was given up for adoption by his teenage mother before the age of one and grew up in a working-class family in the wet and windy North of England. Young found a form of escapism when watching great films of the day with his adopted father: Audrey Hepburn, Marlon Brando, John Wayne, and of course Taylor and Monroe entranced the impressionable young boy and unveiled a life so different from his own.

Young’s fascination with these timeless stars, combined with his own artistic inclinations, saw him study photography, film and graphic design at the University of Chester, and art and design at Exeter College, before travelling to London in pursuit of the break that would propel him closer to their world and perhaps even take him to America.

Young quickly garnered an exciting reputation for his photography work, capturing many music superstars early in their careers, such as The Smiths, R.E.M and Morrissey. He soon became one of the most sought-after photographers and videographers in the music industry, and Young’s output was regularly emblazoned on the covers of the world’s leading magazines and supplements, as well as being showcased on MTV.

But it was Young’s photography and styling for one of the most seminal album sleeves in pop history – George Michael’s Faith – that rocketed him to his own stardom. Soon, Young was photographing legends such as Bruce Springsteen, Diana Ross, and Björk.

Influenced by the legendary Andy Warhol, Young found the ultimate medium to re-engage with his childhood escapism. Using Warhol’s own printing press, Young’s journey through fandom, fame and celebrity, from Britain to America and back again, comes full circle with FAME.

Artist Russell Young said: 

“FAME is an optimistic gesture to celebrate our heroes and heroines. Like a love letter to all that’s possible, the icons of my childhood are at last in conversation with one another as you walk around the exhibition. Like a moth to a flame, I hope this new series in collaboration with Halcyon Gallery will lure visitors to the richness and luxuriousness of our world’s true superstars.”

Halcyon Gallery Director Paul Green said:

“We are incredibly proud to announce the opening of this blockbuster exhibition, FAME by Russell Young. Young unveils a new series of works featuring cultural icons emblazoned with bold textual surfaces, showcasing his text paintings for the first time alongside his signature diamond dust works. Building on Warholian techniques, his art speaks to today’s preoccupation with glamour and celebrity, whilst paying homage to nostalgic figures of the screen and stage from the past 40 years. Driven by a life-long passion and fascination for Hollywood and America more broadly, the works are raw, visceral, bold and beautiful.”

FAME at Halcyon Gallery follows an exclusive partnership with luxury department store Harrods, where Young was the first ever artist to be featured in its Brompton Road windows along with an exhibition of his diamond dust paintings ICONS on the Third Floor throughout January this year.

Young’s work is represented in numerous prestigious collections, including the Polk Museum of Art in Florida, the Albertina Museum in Vienna, the Istanbul Museum of Modern Art and the Saatchi Collection among many others. Young has exhibited in museums and galleries in London, Paris, Vienna, Berlin, Tokyo, Singapore, New York, Detroit, Miami and Los Angeles. Last year he was the first American-British contemporary artist to ever exhibit at the Modern Art Museum, Shanghai with a full retrospective.