The 21st Century Warhol? Not Sure, But Plasticgod is Pretty Cool

Authored by Scott Goldberg on October 17, 2006 - 5:09pm.

Plasticgod calls himself “The 21st Century Warhol,” which is saying a lot, but whatever you call him, his stuff is good. He animates in a mug shot angle, straight on at the subject, and has a knack for adding the right touches to help the nameless images achieve their identity quickly, even for people who care little for pop culture. Though he has different pieces, his primary focus seems to be the “Gods Heads” and “God Bods,” which have achieved popularity with a celebrity audience that Plasticgod makes no effort to conceal. It seems like the unartistic thing to do – becoming a “celebutante,” that is – but it’s obviously been done before, by Andy Warhol, to give one relatable example, which is no coincidence, as Plasticgod admits on his site. The celebrities include Tim Curry, Seth Green, Paul McCartney, and Fred Durst (to name four of the 50 or so he has listed on his website).

In person the Bods and Heads are painted (digitally) on a small brick-shaped square. Prices for a Plasticgod piece are high. A Head, which is about 4”x4”, goes for around $75 for a print. A Bod goes for about $90 on the same size canvas. Two things about Plasticgod are apparent when you first see his work in person (which you can do in several places in Los Angeles, most notably Munkey King in Chinatown and Santa Monica): 1) After becoming even slightly acquainted with his work, you could identify a God Bod or God Head anywhere in the world as being a true Plasticgod work – the requisite quality of any meaningful artist. And 2) You’ve never seen anything quite like him – a requisite for greatness.