Boy George has said his new art collections, Fame and The Originals, are about “joy, humour, and celebrating otherness”.
The four mixed-media silkscreen portraits in Fame explore the music star’s relationship with stardom and depict some of the musicians who have inspired him through the years – Madonna, David Bowie and Prince.
“You know, there’s a lot of rock and roll stories that are cliches”, he told the PA news agency.
“And people’s relationship with fame, historically, have been difficult, and there’s been lots of tragedy.
“So I understand that there’s a kind of darkness, but I’m not sure if I celebrate that in my work – the darkness.
“It’s more the humorous kind of joyful, I find myself wanting to put positive messages into my work.”
He added: “I think my art’s about joy, humour and celebrating otherness, but not leaving anyone out.”
The 63-year-old singer, who rose to fame as the frontman of pop band Culture Club, has also created his own self-portrait, called Colour By Numbers, for Fame alongside three multimedia pieces for The Originals Collection.
Asked whether he creates with an audience in mind, Boy George told PA: “I think it’s a bit like dressing up.
“There’s a point where when you’re 17, you’re definitely doing it to get attention, but when you’re 63 it really isn’t for anyone else but yourself.
“And I think I’ve always kind of felt like, if you like what you’re doing, whether it’s a piece of music or a piece of art, if you like it and you’re prepared to put it on your own wall, then I guess it makes it accessible to other people.
“But like all these things it’s so subjective.
“It’s hard for me to say whether I deliberately want to be commercial, but I’m not shy of it. You know, I feel like selling a paintings like applause.”
The music star, who has appeared as a judge on The Voice and was a contestant on I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here! in 2022 also reflected on how he deals with criticism.
“If criticism stops you from expressing yourself, that’s sad”, he said.
“I feel like you have to always risk ridicule, and sometimes people say things about me that make me laugh.
“Sometimes I’ll read something. 20 years ago, at the time, it really upset me. And now I think ‘Oh my God that’s funny as f***.'”
The Bowie portrait in Fame is called Yamamoto, while Madonna’s portrait is named after her alter-ego Madame X.
The artwork depicting Prince is called Purple Reign, referring to his sixth studio album, and shows the music artist in his signature purple coat.
The Originals Collection includes Basquiat 03, a portrait of US artist Jean-Michel Basquiat, and mixed media pieces Give Drag A Chance and The Space Matador.
The artist’s debut collections with Castle Fine Art will go on sale from 8am on October 25 on the art retailer’s website and in their nationwide UK galleries.
