By Joe Ledbetter (Last Gasp)
ISBN: 978-0-86719-718-1
When you were a kid watching cartoons did you ever imagine that one day you could justify your simple pleasures by telling the nay-sayers and terminally unhip that you were a student of serious, capital “A” Art?
It’s happened twice in my lifetime: first in the mid-1960s when Pop Art stormed the bastions of haughty institutionalised snobbery and Stan Lee briefly re-dubbed his fledgling House of Ideas “Marvel Pop Art Productions” and it’s happening again now with the West Coast-led “Lowbrow” or Pop Surrealist Movement.
This highly colourful, multi-media, exceedingly commercialised new trend (as well as the art itself, many creators sell Designer original art apparel and especially toys based on their creations) blends baby-boomer memories of cartoons, comics, television, toys, monster-movies and a million other empty, unforgettable delights into a high gloss, stunningly lavish exploration of modern culture.
A major exponent of the last few years is Joe Ledbetter.
In truth Ledbetter, although highly popular, prolific and much sought after, is only on the periphery of the movement, and a close examination of this beautiful hardback collection of his paintings from 2004-2008 will show why and how he usually follows his own instincts. Adopting the techniques, style and form of cute animal animation, Ledbetter is less interested in examining society and the nostalgia it has generated, and more with revisiting the themes that permeate his source material.
In cartoons kids see that looking distinctive, being mighty and constantly proving your mettle is all that counts. Ledbetter, with his highly stylised, recurring cast of characters; a big-eyed, floppy-eared, rainbow coloured, many-tentacled, fuzzy repertory company combines startling design and composition with a sly, wry inquiry that gently asks the observer to think while awash in a tide of practically tribal, if not heraldic, combative imagery.
Surreal, yes, Absurd, of course, and so very subtly Subversive: rendered with superlative craftsmanship and always at the intersection of graphic design and the elevated Gallery Culture of art, there’s a keen eye and a chiding questioning behind all these superbly punchy and dynamic images. Ledbetter is making the popular street iconography of the 21st century in just the same manner as Vaughn Bodé did with his comic strips in the latter half of the 20th.
It’s the art of the Everyman and you will be seeing it everywhere: when he’s Joe Public you’ll be glad you picked up this magical Ledbetter collection as the wave started to crest…
© 2009 Joe Ledbetter. All Rights Reserved.
To see more images go to joeledbetter.com