For all his blusterous bad-behavior and ballistic bile,
Kanye West possess a certain sense of style, refinement and knowledgeable taste
in regards to fashion and the arts. Kanye
is a man/child blessed with talent; the ability to compose intricate Raps as he
dresses well and completes drawings that are much better than good. West is
also able to solicit the great artists of his time and collaborates frequently
with those peers. Talents to note and include are Takashi Murakami, George
Condo and Rapper/Mogul Jay-Z.
West is a champion of the art of media manipulation as is
evident in the attention given his recent wedding; while orchestrating and including
the Vogue Magazine cover featuring himself and his then bride to be Kim
Kardashian. Another important recent artistic feat for West was the February Interview
Magazine cover story and immensely innovative and provocative photo spread
(many of the photos included here) highlighting the radical artist. He
continues to release new music and videos while developing a fashion line
conforming to his unique sensibilities and ideals. This month’s issue for the
fashion conscience male; GQ displays West at his best and highlights his
monochromatic flair for originality and compositional matches and pairings. An
arresting interview explaining his inner dinosaur and blowfish are found inside
it pages too.
One of Kanye’s best and most interesting art pieces is his
“Heartless” video. West produced and essentially directed this tribute to the
inspired animation of Ralph Bakshi. The classic Bakshi film release “American
Pop” is the background and driving force of the West video. Scenes are recreated
directly from Bakshi’s superb animated
Historical Fiction. It tells the story through several generations of an
immigrant family’s journey and escape from Russia during the Bolshevik Revolution
to the United States. They eventually achieve both political and
musical freedom as they find their place in life and the world. I’m certain
West sees a comparison to his personal life and struggles in the narrative. Within
the video West includes a nod to Warhol and the American classic Hanna-Barbara
studios.
"Heartless"
In the course of his career West is often infuriating and polarizing but he is never short of surprise, invention and “the shock of the new.” Kanye West remains among the seminal artists and fashion mavericks of this; his times.
