A "child" of Andy Warhol, friend of Debbie Harry, buddy of artist Keith Haring, inspiration to Marc Jacobs and collaborator with them all, Stephen Sprouse was among the first generation of artists who didn't distinguish between fashion, art and rock. Mostly known for his upscale version of downtown street fashion, Sprouse's artwork extended from design to silkscreen to paper. Before his premature death in 2004, Sprouse had been preparing for a retrospective of his life's work. And this January, five years later, it will be ready for display in a full-blown Sprouse-esque exhibition called "Rock on Mars" -- a futuristic, pop-influenced smorgasbord -- at Deitch Projects.
"Hopefully people saw his fashion designs when people were wearing them out," says Suzanne Geiss, director at Deitch, "but I'm excited to see what he did on clothing extended to total installations. Seeing these things together will be a first." Sprouse often incorporated musicians into his work -- in this exhibition, designed and curated by long-time collaborator Jamie Boud, there will be paintings of a crucified Iggy Pop and a rarely-seen Sid Vicious with his pants down. In conjunction with the exhibition, Rizzoli is set to release a book of Sprouse's work by Roger and Mauricio Padilha, The Stephen Sprouse Book; and Louis Vuitton has created a new line of clothing and accessories based on the original Vuitton-Sprouse 2001 collaboration.
The exhibition runs from Jan. 9 through Feb. 28, 2009, at Deitch Projects, 18 Wooster St., New York.
RSS