Over thirty years ago in Russia, Melamid’s first shows were bulldozed flat for their stinging sociopolitical commentary. Yet as a matured artist now living in New York, Melamid addresses today’s celebrities of American mass culture with cool detachment. Perhaps because he is an outsider to this movement looking in, Melamid is able to grasp at the human quality of these fairy-tale stars. There are no Cadillacs, cribs, gats, or bitches to beef up the aura of Fiddy and Snoop here. Instead the honesty of these portraits, through the critical eye and trained hand of Melamid, access a relatable side of hip-hop’s heroes. These are historical documents of our generation.

By the time Melamid came upon twelve glorified gangsters as his muse, his work had already seen several transformations in content. For almost forty years he collaborated Vitaly Komar, whom he met while sketching morgue cadavers in Russia. The two moved to the States to fully develop their renegade ideas, becoming well known conceptual artists. In 2003 their last joint project involved elephants painting in Thailand, after which Melamid took a radical new direction. As his first solo show, Holy Hip-Hop is a clear departure from the themes seen in previous years. Working independently this artist takes new liberties, coupling traditional European painting styles with starkly contemporary subjects. And it is truly the subject of each portrait that stirs interest: Snoop Dogg, Mark Ecko, Russell Simmons, Lil Jon, and Common, to name a few. Melamid was only granted company with such heavy hitters through his son DantheMan, who directs music videos for several hip-hop artists. Tagging along with his son to recording sessions, Melamid experienced the artists in private moments of genius. Of course once 50 Cent had a portrait, the ensuing eleven were easy bait. And there’s plenty more holy on the way, with portraits of twelve Roman clergymen and twelve Russian oligarchs in the works.

Showstopper: Alex Melamid

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