666 2017

Ben Frost made this painting, called 666, with some kind of smooth enamel or plastic paint – maybe house paint? – on what looks like board. The image is a readymade mash-up, you know? Like he’s taken Pinocchio riding a really bummed-out Pikachu, and silkscreened, stenciled, or taped it off with super hard edges. It's a flat, graphic style that comes straight out of advertising. It's a smart and funny critique of how we consume images and the way we package our childhoods. I’m thinking about how Frost is playing with these immediately recognizable pop culture figures. The guy must be laughing, or at least smirking, while he’s making this stuff – like, what’s more evil than Disney? The piece feels fresh because it’s got this punk attitude mixed with super slick execution. It’s like, yeah, let’s fuck with these sacred cows and see what happens, you know? It is almost like he's having a conversation with Warhol and all the pop artists who came before him.