Jim Riswold’s spirited compositions evoke child’s play, with unlikely subjects selling subversive ideals while cheekily mocking modern life.
Riswold’s intentionally dubious art reflects a twisted vision of history and society, featuring high-profile characters out of step with their scaled-down surroundings. His strange blend of erudite thought and guileless simplicity suggests a new form of non-narrative visual storytelling that builds upon pop-art aesthetics.
A self-described “fake artist,” Riswold first worked as creative director at the Wieden+Kennedy ad agency, launching campaigns for the likes of Michael Jordan, Nike, and Tiger Woods. In 2000, however, he was diagnosed with chronic myelogenous leukemia, and left advertising to devote his life to art. Ten years after his diagnosis, Riswold continues to deliver slick and mischievously controversial pieces that are thought-provoking and entertaining works of art.
Visit Jim Riswold’s website, read his essay for Esquire, and if you’re in LA, catch his latest show, Ham Sandwich and Mao and Other Items.
Click through below to view a gallery of Riswold’s work.
Will You Be My Valentine, Chairman Mao?
Ham Sandwich & Mao
Shopping with Jeff Koons #2
Shopping with Jeff Koons #4
Damien Hirst Gets a Fish for his Seventh Birthday
Hirst Family X-Mas (Detail: Used Cigarettes)
Hirst Family X-Mas (Detail: Dead Butterflies)
French Bread Artillery
Le Chapeau de Napoleon
Le Retraite de Napoleon
The Hitlermobile
Tchotchke Mussolini
11 Nativity Scenes in One