Ridin’ the Zep’ 

Dave Macdowell created this painting, 'Ridin' the Zep',' using traditional oil paints. It's a medium associated with 'high art,' yet here, it’s deployed in the service of fan art, a form usually considered outside the fine art canon. Macdowell has layered the oil paint to create a smooth surface, allowing for his airbrushed-style rendering. The result is an almost hyperreal quality, despite the surreal subject matter. The subject is the rock band Led Zeppelin having a tea party under a zeppelin airship that is on fire. The painting is an overt celebration of Led Zeppelin as a brand and a cultural phenomenon. The care put into the production process is what is most striking. Macdowell demonstrates that fan art can be just as technically accomplished and visually compelling as more traditionally 'highbrow' works. It challenges our conventional hierarchy of art forms, inviting us to consider what makes something 'art' in the first place.