Marilyn Monchrome - Original Oil Painting

Background

A truly one-off painting, the first iteration of my series ‘Chromatic Icons’. Marilyn Monroe, arguably one of the most iconic individuals in the rise of pop culture, an inspiration for what it means to be a modern woman post-war; ideals of beauty, ambition, career achievement. For her to re-define what it means to be sexy, to be a free person, her contribution to the world cannot be understated. In contrast, despite the perception, her reality was a deep struggle with fame, addiction and mental health, from the media pressure placed upon her with constant objectification - dehumanisation through sex symbolism, left her with a desire just to escape.

I felt strongly that it was a natural path to begin this series with her portrait - though unsurprisingly her image interpreted by many artists, I felt desperate to offer my expression of Marilyn Monroe. Stylistically, following one of my idols (and a friend to Monroe), Andy Warhol - who’s screen prints of the 60s were my seed in evolving the composition and colour treatment that birthed this style. This painting currently is the only square format in the series, and in size feels very immersive and physical. It was worked on obsessively to create a hyper-real, dream-like vision of Monroe in a two-tone neon chrome effect, contrasting blues and magenta.