“All great art has some element of humor to it.” These words-to-live-by come from art collector and publisher Peter Brandt when asked to boil down Kenny Scharf’s appeal. Scharf was a child of television cartoon culture, equal parts Bob Clampett’s Wackyland and what he liked to call “Hanna-Barbarism” mainlined through a pinball machine, never tilting under the force of its own illogicalness. Scharf came of age in 60’s suburbia, the San Fernando Valley to be specific, and the ever-present pop plasticity surrounding his upbringing ropes one in like a neon lasso. A student of Andy Warhol’s propensity for making fun of art, Scharf was grouped with two other Factory wunderkind Jean Michel Basquiat and Keith Haring. A firm believer that art exists outside museum walls, his top priority has always been making art accessible. He’s been labeled a “street artist” and a “graffiti artist,” but Scharf’s unwavering ability to stick to his own set of ground rules rockets his work beyond the realm of classification. Once a major force in the New York Arts scene, has since migrated West where filmmakers Max Basch and Malia Scharf find him. A fountain of productivity, he finds inspiration while vacationing in Brazil, combing the beaches for what he deemed the best garbage in the world. If life means living for the moment, Scharf wants every moment to be fun. Perhaps it’s his devout adherence to Peter Pan Syndrome that keeps the smile on his face. (2020) — Scott Marks
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