Eric Clapton is a man of action. When he first attended a London art show 10 years ago that featured 3 graffiti artists - Quinones, Stash and Futura - he was quick to show his appreciation for the artwork. Clapton purchased a few pieces from the show, then commissioned the artists to do custom paint jobs on a few of his guitars. A full decade since that London art show, Clapton still does not hesitate to endow the arts. When Lee Quinones recently decided to sell a collection of his paintings he calls his “dirty-dozen,” he fired off an email to a few fans of his work to let them know it was available for purchase. Eric Clapton - our man of action - hit Q back 10 minutes later with a reply like “Lee, they’re mine.” Clapton followed through with $120,000 USD for the lot.
Social Commentary In Art
Each painting shows a shoplifter nicking a different record album from the soulful 70’s. One has the bandit making off with James Brown’s Sex Machine and another the Isley Brother’s Get Into Something. Quinones described the paintings in an interview with Rolling Stone mag:
The paintings are a celebration of the times, musicians and those songs,” he said. “The album covers are meticulously reproduced because they were also beautiful pieces of art. These paintings are exploding with color and then have a ghostly image of my hand — a kind of skimpy drawing of my hand to symbolize that I had to be invisible in that store ’cause you knew you had to go back in and do it again.
Quinones admits that the paintings are a form of self-portrait from his experiences living in NYC in the Seventies. Many an artist, particularly painters, will relate to this earnest description of his diet:
I was painting all the time and to make money on the side, I was lifting records,” he says. “It fit into my agenda of lifting everything from coffee to paint. All I needed was paint and music to survive. I could live on water after that.”
Quinones’ Dirty Dozen On Display
If you want to see these lovingly-crafted masterpieces up close, you haven’t missed your chance! Not yet anyway. They will be on display at PS1 in NYC until September 7th. Then they will tour London, Paris and Japan before landing at Clapton’s crash pad. Also, there will be a very special surprise on September 7th: the last day of the NYC show will feature a live performance by one of the series’ musical subjects! Try to guess which one:
The Dirty Dozen Album Covers by Quinones Purchased by Eric Clapton
Herman Kelly Dance to the Drummer’s Beat
James Brown Sex Machine
The Jimmy Castor Bunch It’s Just Begun
Isley Brothers Get Into Something
Baby Huey Listen to Me
Yellow Sunshine Yellow Sunshine
Babe Ruth The Mexican
Lonnie Liston Smith Expansions
The Futures Castles in the Sky
Johnny Pate Shaft in Africa
Dennis Coffey Scorpio
The Incredible Bongo Band Apache
Links
For more info, see the Rolling Stone interveiw with Quinones
Quinones wiki
PS1 Exhibition page for Quinones
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