The work shown is not appealing to me (especially in the photographic print format). Aesthetically I don't really like it and the exhibition was well... a bit bland. Conceptually it is easy. There is nothing deep and meaningful and nothing I really connect with apart from the fact that it is about image and aesthetic.
Even so, Philip Levine himself is an interesting subject. As an artist he has decided on his soul practise and focuses on that. I understand that many people are scared of baldness and his head art is a way of overcoming this. Whereas being a spokesperson for the bald doesn't really appeal to me his statement does. As a fashion piece and personality his ideas work well. Artistically I think the "gold" has to lie in Levine as a subject. The marketing of his work and himself is really quite remarkable. In placing himself at the centre of his art he is giving himself a celebrity status and achieving it. Placing adverts on the tube and live performances where he reveals himself as a sculpture at the V and A are amongst his marketing ploys. As an artist he also focuses on collaboration highlighting the importance of networking and innovation. As Levine gets more well known connections with Artists such as Warhol are made in my mind. Levine is now even advertising for Gillette and they are sponsoring his show. Yet again the public invest in the artist and the artist is what interests people. Kitsch is still in. Pop art rules? Good for him... and it is pretty cool...
http://www.headism.co.uk/
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