These Were the Most Popular Contemporary Artists in April

We’ve been seeing the name of David Choe on this list many times in the past, although this time he dropped down from number 5 to number 9. But he is still hanging in there – and we hope to see him in the future as well. Choe knows the true meaning of the word colorful, given that he knows how to demonstrate it without using any color at all. Even his black and white paintings suggest that the real thing is screaming with color, and well, his entire life story can be said to be a quite exciting vivid experience itself. There are not enough words in the world to describe the originality of his art (so you best take a look at the pictures).

If you’d like to understand postmodernism, Jeff Koons could be your 101. Probably one of the most controversial artists since Andy Warhol, but with a far more friendly approach to the global audience, Koons redefines the notion of Kitsch, without even using any words. Nonetheless, Koons remains within the domain of high art. It is no wonder that he is still one of the most popular artists (and he is one of those artists who reappear on this list from time to time). He obviously has some irresistible charm – just like his sculptures do.

The prolific Croatian illustrator and muralist – Mr. Slaven Kosanovic, also known as Lunar – is now one of the most popular artists in our Database. You will probably be seeing more of him in our future Street Updates, since it seems that he is currently in the ascent of his already admirable career. You are going to love his endearing characters, animal-like creatures, and his witty references to the existing narratives and characters from popular fiction (such as Star Wars, for example). Also, he often works outside the borders of his own country, so you’ll perhaps get a chance to see him working in your city, especially if you’re from Latin America or Cuba (he told us that that’s where he’ll be heading later this year).

In a recent interview with the authors of a movie depicting the turbulent life of the American artist, The Quietus shared an interesting quote. A year before he died, Robert Mapplethorpe said: “I don’t like that particular word, ‘shocking’. I’m looking for the unexpected. I’m looking for things I’ve never seen before“. This discontent with the worn-out phrase (shocking) explains neatly what kind of an artist Mapplethorpe was. Ever progressive, never on the safe side, and always daring. His art will make you feel slightly uncomfortable, but it won’t let you take your eyes off it. It reveals the beautiful and the bestial sides of the sexual, the homoerotic, the innate. And as we all know, these controversial things are always the most popular ones.

People seem to just love the art of Alexis Diaz. If he’s not featured in our regular Street Update, he is surely going to be featured in our monthly Most Popular Artists post. This month, he holds the fifth place – which is quite a success, given the fact that we haven’t been talking much about him lately, actually. But he is apparently still on the go. Also, you can always return to some of our previous posts and check out the things that he has been doing. A couple of weeks ago he made a beautiful mural in his homeland (Puerto Rico) with his colleague, Borondo, and all the fans of well-illustrated graphics can’t wait to see what he will come up with next.

Fang Xiang is a newcomer to the list, and we are very happy to welcome him. The vivid content of his beautiful watercolors is almost impossible to describe, and perhaps it is even impossible to perceive. One has to take a moment or few, in order to contemplate his dense paintings. What do we actually see? A wonderful richness of color, a plethora of elements reminiscent of the Chinese tradition, but all of it somehow wrapped in a mantle of contemporaneity. Everything seems to resonate with beauty, the one that doesn’t need any further explanation. And we are glad that this kind of beauty has made it to number 4 on our list.

For one reason or another, Kris Kuksi, the number 3 on our list, will most definitely steal your attention. You don’t have to be a fan of fantastic realism, or its aesthetics, to be at least slightly fascinated with his works. They are so detailed, so full of ornaments and thousands of elements, that looking at them feels like reading a story. An epic one, to be precise. His sculptures are made with reference to history, war, religion, mythology, but always with a certain dose of the artist’s own creative imagination. And then if this isn’t interesting enough, consider the fact that he uses discarded materials to make his art.

If he’s not our number one, you can bet he’s in the top five. How does he do it? We still don’t know. Perhaps we could make an analysis of this phenomenon sometime in the future – how is an anonymous artist, whose art has to become exhausted at some point, still so popular? Is it because of his secret identity (which was also revealed a few weeks ago)? Is the critical attitude keeping him forever cool? What will happen when there’s nothing left to tackle? Is this constant debate on his popularity giving him extra credit? Will we ever know?