An A3 Limited Edition Fine Art Print
Printed on 310g Hahnemuhler German Etching Paper.
Paper Size: 307mm x 430mm
Print Size: 297mm x 420mm
Each print comes signed and dated by the artist.
Limited Edition of 50
Brand new work!
I love this recent collaboration between the wonderful Beate Karlsson's AVAVA and Adidas. It takes the essence of a powerful brand an reinvents it. Brands like Adidas fascinate me, the way today they often seem to be constantly looking to reflect the current trends, absorbing the new and experimental into their brand at an increasingly fast pace. In a way this is good as those mega brands are often the only companies that can afford to pay properly for creative developments. But in another way it still feels all about power and who has it. It reminds me of those Renaissance dynastic families like the de Medici's of Florence or the Sforza's of Milan who were the leading patrons of the incredible art and architecture that we now think of as the Italian Renaissance. The Medici and Sforza families were the brands, in a way, of the 15th and 16th centuries. The ones that everyone wanted to be associated with and the ones that could actually pay. Being associated with them could make or break an artist both creatively and financially. Not too much difference to how brands function today. We need them as much now as then as without this idea of patronage how do artists survive? Of course there are often conflicts of interest. If someone is paying you to do something does that ultimately mean that they have artistic control? I guess it depends on the brand. It seems to me in this case that Adidas have given Karlsson carte blanche which is refreshing to see!
I've combined it with this Raphael 1504 portrait of Elisabetta Gonzaga. She was a member of the House of Gonzaga who ruled Mantua in Italy from 1328 to1708. Elisabetta was a powerful force to be reckoned with and I think she would have very much liked this new take on an old idea...