Image Commercially Licensed From: Unsplash
By: Maggie Trent
(WESTPORT, CONN. – February 1 – 7-9pm, 2024)
Clarendon Fine Art will launch “All You Need is Art”, a new exhibition by world-renowned contemporary pop art phenomenon and Banksy protégé Mr. Brainwash on Thursday, February 1, 2024, at its U.S. flagship gallery in Westport, Conn. The exhibition, which celebrates the gallery’s first anniversary in the States, will be free and open to the public through February 8, 2024. As part of its U.S. launch, Clarendon is pleased to be partnering with The Westport Museum for History & Culture, an essential American institution dedicated to the mission of Making History Whole.
The gallery’s manager Eve Gianni will host an invite-only artist reception for Mr. Brainwash, AKA Thierry Guetta, on February 1, 2024. First Selectwoman for Westport, Jennifer Tooker, will be on-site to celebrate the exhibition’s launch and the first anniversary.
The “All You Need is Art” exhibit will take over the gallery’s two floors and highlight high-value, impactful, large-scale sculptures, ‘vandalized’ canvases’, painted balloon sculptures, vibrant works on wooden panels and sections of subway trains, as well as origami sculptures that serve as miniature replicas of the artist’s famed Rodeo Drive installation. Mr. Brainwash will also release exclusive limited-edition silkscreens, marrying four of the most well-known artworks in history: Van Gogh’s Sunflowers of 1888 and Irises of 1890 and Warhol’s Hibiscus inspired Flowers of 1964 and Campbell’s Soup tin from the 1962 series.
“My aim is to reveal the unexpected.” – Mr. Brainwash
The artist, whose collectors include the Obamas, Madonna, and David and Victoria Beckham, rose to fame in 2008 when he mounted his debut show in Los Angeles, ‘Life is Beautiful.” The critically acclaimed exhibit welcomed over 50,000 visitors with pieces selling for six figures. In 2010, Mr. Brainwash appeared in Exit Through the Gift Shop, an Academy-nominated documentary produced by Banksy that documented his transition from filmmaker to street artist. In 2022, he opened the Mr. Brainwash Art Museum in Beverly Hills showcasing over a decade of artwork from solo shows around the globe. He has amassed auction sales of over $2.5 million over the last decade and his work can be seen in TV shows like Shameless and Keeping up with The Kardashians, album covers for The Red Hot Chili Peppers, Michael Jackson and Rick Ross, and design collaborations with pop culture legends like Marvel Comics creator Stan Lee as well as brands including Hublot, Mercedes-Benz, and The Hard Rock Hotel.
A committed activist, Mr. Brainwash uses his passion to give back to the community and supports organizations such as the Prince’s Trust for the benefit of vulnerable youth and the LA LGBT Center. He partnered with RED to raise AIDS awareness and teamed up with Michelle Obama to support her organization “Let Girls Learn,” and Pope Francis to raise funds for the latter’s youth foundation, Scholas.
Clarendon Fine Art, which boasts over 80 galleries in the UK, has been Mr. Brainwash’s exclusive gallery representative since 2020.
The Clarendon Fine Art US Flagship gallery in Westport is a 3,200-square-foot building at 22 Main Street. The gallery showcases hand-picked international portfolios from world-famous names alongside the best-emerging talents. Word-of-mouth, cultivated relationships, and passion for the art and artists have been the impetus for Clarendon’s growth, making a thriving town the right place to begin this US journey rather than a large city.
The wide range of artworks on exhibit includes originals, collector’s editions, and sculptures across genres including landscape, wildlife, still life, figurative, and abstract. In addition, 20th-Century investment pieces from artists such as Picasso, Miro, Warhol, and Dali are displayed alongside cutting-edge pop and street artists such as Mr. Brainwash, Koons, and Banksy. At the same time contemporary artists including Christian Hook, Fabian Perez, Sherree Valentine-Daines, and the satirical British duo Connor Brothers are complemented by abstract, and landscape works from artists such as Danielle O’Connor Akiyama and Jeffrey Pratt.
Clarendon Fine Art is located at 22 Main Street, Westport, CT.
Exhibition hours are Mondays -Saturday: 10 AM – 6 PM; Sunday: 11 AM – 5 PM and by appointment.
For those interested in checking out the exhibition outside of open hours, appointments can be scheduled by email: westport@clarendonfineart.com
